Apple Brandy
Apple brandy is distilled from fermented apple cider or apple wine, producing a spirit with concentrated orchard-fruit character and a warm, oak-rounded finish when aged. Calvados, from Normandy, is its most famous regional expression. It brings a fruity depth distinct from grape-based brandies.
Common uses
- base spirit for stirred apple-forward cocktails
- adds fruity depth to whiskey drinks
Buying & storage
Keeps more or less indefinitely: Alcohol is preserving it. An open bottle keeps for a very long time, though aromatics do fade slowly.
Storage: keeps indefinitely, store upright away from light
In depth
Understanding apple brandy
How it is made, where it comes from, what it pairs with, and how it behaves in an alcohol-free drink.
Origin
Most famously produced as Calvados in Normandy, France, and as applejack in colonial America.
Recipes
Cocktails containing this ingredient
Stand-in
Where apple brandy is a recommended substitute
Recipes that name it as a swap for something else, with what it replaces.
- Appletiniin place of sour apple liqueur
Swap it
Possible substitutions
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