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interested in calvados production and pursuing the<br />
tradition and bringing some fresh and open ideas at the<br />
same time,” explained Jerome Dupont to me a few years<br />
ago. As head of the stately Domaine Dupont (calvadosdupont.com),<br />
he did so much to push the new modern<br />
image of calvados before his untimely death in 2018.<br />
The aforementioned Groult, Dupont and Drouin are<br />
all members of Esprit Calvados, as is Le Père Jules<br />
(calvados-leperejules.com), which is based in Saint-<br />
Désir and which bottles 10, 20, and even 40-yearold<br />
blends in its atmospheric cellars, and Pierre Huet<br />
(calvados-huet.com), which still has a 1935 vintage<br />
calvados for sale at its highly regarded domaine on the<br />
Route du Cidre in the charmed village of Cambremer.<br />
While Pays d’Auge, closest to Normandy’s historic<br />
beaches, gets much of the attention, there is another<br />
region, Calvados Domfrontais, which adds to the stylistic<br />
diversity. Drouin calls these single-distilled brandies<br />
“more straightforward, more acidic, vibrant and lively,”<br />
a character brought out further by the inclusion of pears<br />
– at least 30%. Two exemplars of this appellation are<br />
producers Lauriston (calvados-lauriston.com) and Père<br />
Magloire (calvados-pere-magloire.com) whose fruity<br />
and more subtle calvados work well as aperitifs or in<br />
cocktails. Regardless of where they are cultivated, “the<br />
apple aromas create the flavourful typicity of calvados<br />
compared to other brown spirits,” Dupont once said.<br />
“And this is one of the main reasons why calvados<br />
lovers are so faithful.” Leave it to a Frenchman to<br />
inject a bit of romance into the intoxicating equation.<br />
WHERE TO STAY<br />
Deauville has been a resort town for Parisians for<br />
decades; its Hotel Normandy Barrière (hotelsbarriere.<br />
com) is a classic, near the beach with a casino<br />
attached. For a quieter time, head outside of town to<br />
Les Manoirs de Tourgéville (lesmanoirstourgeville.<br />
com), set among the area’s golf courses and stud<br />
farms, or to Les Manoirs des Portes de Deauville<br />
(portesdedeauville.com), where the nine cottages are<br />
surrounded by a couple of hectares of blissful calm.<br />
In historic Honfleur, Hôtel Saint-Delis (hotel-saintdelis.fr)<br />
offers nine chic rooms and some remarkable<br />
restaurants in easy reach. But to really get into the<br />
heart of Calvados, head to Château de la Pommeraye<br />
(chateaudelapommeraye.com), set in the countryside<br />
inside a renovated 12th-century castle.<br />
WHERE TO EAT<br />
Normandy is known for its dairy; try the Michelinstarred<br />
Le Pavé d’Auge (pavedauge.com) in Beuvronen-Auge<br />
for some classic cream- and cheese-centred<br />
dishes. Inside the casino in Deauville, Le Ciro’s<br />
Barrière (casinosbarriere.com) makes the most of the<br />
seaside location with a great seafood menu as well as<br />
a superb list of calvados for afterward, or for a more<br />
modern take on local, seasonal ingredients, try Caen’s<br />
A Contre Sens (acontresenscaen.fr).<br />
A TASTE OF THE PAST, TODAY<br />
The popularity of the “third” French<br />
brandy may be increasing but it remains<br />
true to its traditions<br />
CLAES LOFGREN / WINEPICTURES.COM<br />
NetJets<br />
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