Brandy Style

What is Lavanttaler Bananenapfel brandy? A single-variety apple brandy that, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, has been made from hand-picked fruit since the 20th century and offers a complex array of aromas. It's one of the few Carinthian brandies with its own entry in the register of Traditional Foods.

In the glass, it's a clear brandy where apple plays the leading role: ripe fruit, a subtle sweetness, and a dry, clean warmth on the finish. With a bit of attention, you can pick out the hint of banana that gave the variety its name. The riper the apples at harvest, the more pronounced the fruit character in the brandy; apples picked too early leave the distillate thin and green.

Pear brandy forms the second pillar. Pfau bottles a Williams, which under EU rules must be made exclusively from Williams-Christ pears. Williams brandies are prized for their fruitiness, with a soft, juicy pear character.

And what is an Obstler? A fruit brandy whose mash consists of at least 85 percent apples or pears. Up to 15 percent of other fruits or berries is permitted. A single-variety Bananenapfel brandy therefore doesn't legally qualify as an Obstler—it's an apple brandy.

The Lavanttal brandy is related to Calvados, though Calvados is distilled from cider and, under AOC rules, must age in oak casks for at least two years. The Carinthian apple brandy, by contrast, needs no cask and relies entirely on the variety itself.