Maturation & Aging

Freshly distilled apple brandy is crystal clear, sharp and still unsettled. Most distillers therefore let it rest for a while in glass demijohns or stainless steel tanks, where it gathers its aromas and softens. The vessel imparts no color here. Rest is the key tool at this stage, since a brandy bottled too soon often tastes harsh and disjointed.

For color and oak character, a barrel comes into play. Fruit brandy may be aged in oak, ash or acacia. After at least one year of wood contact, a small amount of caramel coloring may be added to even out the hue; coloring is prohibited before that point. The brandy doesn't stay static in the barrel, it loses alcohol strength, while the wood contributes vanilla and spice notes.

In the north, a few producers also age their apple brandy in casks previously used for other spirits. The Hamburg-based Edelhof1514 manufactory, for instance, offers an apple eau-de-vie matured in Calvados casks. The Nordik Edelbrennerei in Jork describes its spirits as handcrafted using traditional methods.

A firm rule governs age statements on the label. If a number appears, it must refer to the youngest component, and the aging must have taken place under tax supervision. So if brandies from different years are blended, only the age of the youngest may be stated.

Calvados follows stricter rules than apple brandy. It must age at least two years in oak casks, and Calvados Domfrontais even three. Apple brandy has no minimum aging requirement, so a brandy from a glass demijohn can be just as fine as one from a barrel, it simply tastes different.