Calvados

Apple orchards and breweries have been mentioned since the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known Norman distillation was made by Gilles Picot, Lord of Gouberville, in 1553, and the guild for cider distillation was established about 50 years later in 1606. In the seventeenth century, traditional cider farms expanded, but the taxation and banning cider spirits were applied elsewhere than in Brittany, Maine and Normandy. The area called "Calvados" was created after the French Revolution, but the eau de vie de cidre was already called calvados in common use. In the nineteenth century, production increased with industrial distillation and working-class fashion for bald coffee. When an outbreak of phylloxera in the last quarter of the 19th century devastated the vineyards of France and Europe, Calvados experienced a "golden age." During World War I, cider brandy was requisitioned for use in armaments because of its alcohol content. [1] The appeal contrôlée regulations officially gave calvados a protected name in 1942. After the war, many cider houses and distilleries were rebuilt, mainly in the Pays d'Auge. Many of the traditional farm structures have been replaced by modern high-yield agriculture. The calvados denomination system was revised in 1984 and 1996. Pommeau obtained its recognition in 1991; in 1997 a name for Domfront with 30% of pears was created.