Cocktails with Calvados
Calvados is an apple brandy from Normandy, France, with rich apple flavor and oak complexity. Essential for the Jack Rose and French-influenced cocktails.
No Calvados? What to use instead
- Type
- Spirit
- Strength
- 40–45% ABV
- Aroma
- Apple, Baked fruit, Vanilla, Oak, Spice
- Taste
- Rich apple, Caramel, Oak, Warm spices
- Finish
- Long, Apple, Warming, Complex
4 drinks with Calvados
History
Calvados has been produced in Normandy since at least the 16th century, using the region's abundant apple orchards. It gained AOC protection in 1942. The best expressions rival fine cognac in complexity and are enjoyed similarly.
How it’s made
Made from cider apples (and sometimes pears) grown in Normandy. The cider is distilled once or twice depending on appellation, then aged in oak barrels. Pays d'Auge calvados requires double pot still distillation and longer aging.
Bottles to try
Boulard VSOPMid-range
Accessible calvados with bright apple and oak, versatile for cocktails.
Christian Drouin VSOPMid-range
Pays d'Auge calvados with rich apple and elegant oak integration.
Père Magloire XOPremium
Well-aged calvados with complex baked apple and spice character.
Got Calvados at home?
Add it to your bar in Proof and see every drink you can make with the bottles you already have.