Fall is the time when apple harvesting is at its
peak. Along with
that comes fresh apple cider (and usually fresh warm
doughnuts). Apple cider is a drink made from
crushed apples, and sometimes fermented (hard cider).
Brandy is distilled from fruit, but if it is made from
anything other than grapes, it is specified so, like apple
brandy. US guidelines
say this drink
must be made from at least twenty percent apple brandy that has been
stored in oak for no less than two years. To create a lighter
profile, apple
brandy is blended with a neutral spirit.
Like tequila and champagne, the French have Calvados, a legally
protected appellation, which means that it must come from a
specific geographic location, this is the Lower Normandy region of
France. It also must be aged in oak casks for at least two
years. Calvados tends to taste 'oakier' and slightly less
apple than its American counterpart.