Last Night's Tipple

Another difference between Laird's Straight Apple Brandy and Calvados (and American imitators of Calvados): just as Scotch and other foreign whisk(e)y frequently comes in tinted green bottles, so too does Calvados and Calvados-style apple brandy. Laird's comes in a clear glass bottle, just like virtually all quality American whiskey. And why not? It apparently is aged in new charred oak barrels just like American straight whiskey, so it has a nice deep amber color that's a heck of a lot prettier than dark green bottle glass. Just another reminder that while Laird's is apple brandy (and obviously so), it's a distinctively American approach to it.

Last Night's Tipple

Another pour of Laird's BIB Straight Apple Brandy. I remain impressed with it. Lots of apple aromas, and many of the barrel-related characteristics that aging in charred new oak barrels causes. Very different from Calvados, but an enjoyable expression of apple brandy in its own right. I would like to try Laird's older apple brandies, but, alas, they're not available in this area, to the best of my knowledge.

Speaking of American apple brandy, see Will's post at A Suitable Wardrobe about Clear Creek Distillery's Eau de Vie Pomme, which, although distilled in Oregon, is made in the Calvados style. I have seen a 375 ml. bottle of this at Spec's in Houston (around $21), and I have been tempted more than once. After reading what Will has written about it, I'm sure that I'll buy it sooner rather than later.

Last Night's Tipple

One of the things that I find wondrous about high-quality spirits is that they are chameleon-like: they present different facets of their personalities at different times, depending on the conditions under which they are tasted and the moods of the taster. When I tried Laird's Straight Apple Brandy back in June, I wrote that it tasted like apple whiskey, meaning that it had the same aromas and flavors from its barrel aging that I associate with American whiskey (namely, char and vanilla). When I tasted it last night, the char and the vanilla were still there, but my dominant impression was of fresh apples, with cinnamon and nutmeg in the background. It reminded me of a young Calvados, to be honest, something that I didn't think was possible. It was a totally different experience, but similarly satisfying.

Last Night's Tipple

Did you think that the adjective "straight" (as it pertains to spirits) could only be applied to whiskey or that only a whiskey could be bottled in bond? So did I. But I was wrong, so wrong. "Straight" can apply to any spirit type and means that the spirit has been distilled to no more than 160 proof and has not been mixed with any grain neutral spirits. In the case of straight apple brandy, I would imagine that the mash that it's made from would have to be at least 51% apples, but I don't know what else could be in the mash. Pears? Grapes? Grain? (I know: grain sounds revolting, but who knows?) And any spirit can be bottled in bond, provided that it is made at one distillery in one season, aged for at least four years in oak casks, has not had any flavoring or other adulterant added to it, and is bottled under government supervision at 100 proof. So it is thus possible for Laird's to produce Laird's Straight Apple Brandy, Bottled in Bond. The label says that it is bottled at DSP-NJ-1, Laird's Scobeyville, NJ facility. For some reason, it doesn't say where it was distilled, although Laird's website says that all distillation is now done in North Garden, VA.

Applejack has a venerable tradition in the United States, particularly in the Northeast. In colonial times, people would leave barrels of hard cider out during the winter and repeatedly skim off the ice that formed inside. Because alcohol has a much lower freezing point than water, the skimmed ice would be mostly water, which would have the effect of increasing the concentration of alcohol in the liquid that remained. This method of production is called fractional freezing. The problem with it is that ethanol is not the only kind of alcohol in hard cider that is concentrated by fractional freezing. Fermentation of apples (and of grains and other fermentable substances) does not just produce ethanol. It also produces small quantities of methanol and fusel alcohols, which are highly toxic. They're not a problem in hard cider or beer or wine, but they are a problem in a spirit produced by fractional freezing. Nobody with any sense makes spirits this way any more, and it has been thus for more than two hundred years.

The Laird family has been making applejack since 1698. Their first commercial production was in 1780, making them the oldest still-operating American distillery. Up until the 1970s, their applejack was pure apple brandy; but they have since blended it with grain neutral spirits to lighten its flavor and reduce their costs. Their bottling labeled applejack is currently about 35% apple brandy and 65% GNS. They label all the pure apple brandy as apple brandy instead of applejack. The BIB bottling that I tried last night is probably four years old or maybe a bit older. There are also 7.5 year old and 12 year old versions. All of Laird's apple brandies are aged in charred oak barrels, which brings me to my initial impression of the BIB: it's like apple whiskey. I can't claim credit for that phrase, but it is accurate. The barrels give the brandy lots of char and vanilla aromas, just like Bourbon. There's also a distinctive apple juice aroma, but the char and vanilla dominates. On the palate, it's fruit-dominated, sweet, and a little rough. It could use more time in the barrel, but it is pleasant.

Oh, and it is nothing at all like the Calvados that I had a few days ago. I'm eager to try the Laird's 12 YO to see if the age gives it more of a Calvados character. But this is enjoyable enough for what it is. *

* And before Mamacita points it out, yes, I did try this out of a plastic cup while watching fireworks at New Year's; and I didn't like it much then. Of course, drinking anything out of a plastic cup is not perfectly calculated to show it at its best advantage. It was much better last night.