Berneroy Calvados Fine

Cellars: £37.00

NOSE: Fresh apples, lightly aromatic

PALATE: Lively apple character, hearty and warming

FINISH: Complex apple flavours,Warming

THE IDEAL SERVE: Serve straight up or on the rocks

Country: France

Region: Normandy

Producer: Berneroy Distillers

Bottling: Distillery Bottling

Style: Calvados

Owner: Berneroy Distillers

Status: Operational

Age: at least 2 years

Cask Type: 100% Oak Cask

Colour: Clear bright gold

Flavour Profile: Fruity

Allergens: Not known

Bottle size: 70cl

abv:  40.0%

Distillery Information

Founded in 1863, the House of Camus is the last great independent and family-owned cognac house among the ‘grandes marques’. It is the 5th largest cognac brand with a strong international presence.

In September 1944, Michel Camus began working with a company called Blanchard  & Cie., which created the Berneroy brand  as part of a range of spirits to be sold by Camus. Later on, the company changed its name to Berneroy & CIE., and it was finally purchased by Camus in the 1970s.With finely honed skills and a passion  for quality, the Berneroy Master Blender  oversees every step of the production  process:

Calvados, one of the world’s finest spirits, has been produced in the historic French region of Normandy for at least five centuries.

The Calvados Berneroy Master Blender employs time-honoured methods and finely honed expertise to create a range of distinctively fruity calvados, capturing the very essence of the local orchards.

Top-quality cider apples from the finest independent orchards in Normandy are grown the traditional way, picked at the peak of ripeness, then washed, sorted, crushed, pressed, and naturally  fermented to

dryness (5-6% alc./vol.).

This freshly made, highly aromatic dry cider is distilled using a continuous column still to concentrate and enhance its lively apple character. The resulting crystal-clear spirit is then patiently aged under the Master Blender’s watchful eye in French oak barrels for several years.

Calvados Berneroy is aged exclusively in old wood to preserve its genuine aromatic intensity and to avoid an over-oaked taste. Over time, its distinctive aroma of fresh apples evolves to develop more complex aromas of butter, vanilla, baked apple and liquorice.

APPLE GROWING AND HARVESTING

Over 180 named apple varieties are authorized for use in the making of Calvados Berneroy.

These traditional cider apples are grown in the lush green fields of Normandy and harvested at the peak of ripeness, from mid September to the end of November.

The precious fruit are then washed, crushed, and pressed in order to produce an aromatic fresh apple must or juice.

NATURAL FERMENTATION

The freshly pressed apple must then ferments spontaneously due to ‘wild’ or indegenous yeasts present on the apple skins and in the environment.

The resulting cider is fermented to dryness in carefully controlled conditions over a minimum period of four weeks and typically attains 5-6% alcohol/volume.

DISTILLATION

In accordance with tradition and the AOC Calvados rules and regulations, Calvados Berneroy products are single distilled.

The freshly made, highly aromatic dry cider is distilled using an antique copper column still to concentrate and enhance its lively apple character.

Single distillation is what makes Calvados Berneroy fruitier, distinctively aromatic and charmingly rustic compared to calvados from the nearby AOC Calvados Pays d’Auge and AOC Calvados Domfrontais regions.

AGEING

The crystal-clear spirit which flows from the still is then patiently aged in French oak barrels for several years under the Berneroy Master Blender’s watchful eye. By law, this eau-de-vie must spend a minimum of 2 years in oak casks before it can be sold as Calvados. Similar to other famous oak-aged spirits from France, calvados is defined by the following quality ranges:

Fine – minimum of 2 years oak ageing

VSOP – minimum of 4 years oak ageing

XO – minimum of 6 years oak ageing

Calvados Berneroy is aged exclusively in older, ‘seasoned’ barrels to preserve its genuine aromatic intensity and to avoid it becoming over-oaked. Over time, its distinctive aroma of fresh apples evolves to develop more complex aromas of butter, vanilla, baked apples and liquorice.

BLENDING

Through the subtle art of blending, the Berneroy Master Blender then combines eaux-de-vie of various ages and characteristics to ensure a consistent House style and create the superb Calvados Berneroy range