Michel Huard-Guillouet - Calvados Hors d'Age Couvreur Ex-Sherry Cask

• Sherry-cask-finished Calvados produced by seventh-generation producer Jean-Francois Guillouet in Caligny, Suisse-Normand, under the AOC appellation
• Distilled from 100% apple
• Cider is naturally fermented sur lie in fiberglass, stainless steel, & enamel-lined tanks for 12 months
• Distilled on a traveling, wood-fired copper column still
• Hors d’Age Calvados aged in French oak is finished for 2 years in ex-Amontillado sherry casks in the cellars of famed French whisky producer, Michel Couvreur, in Bouze-les-Beaune, Burgundy
• Aromas of flambéed Honeycrisp apples, Demerara sugar, toasted pecans, and a subtle, oxidized note of sherry lead to a palate of vanilla custard, dulce de leche, and candied apple with a midline of confident acidity throughout. Savory herbs and dark caramel languish on a bittersweet finish.
• 43.5% ABV

The late Michel Couvreur dedicated his life to understanding and celebrating the effects of maturation on the great spirits of the world. He became renowned for his whiskies, distilled in Scotland and aged in the 15-meter-deep tunnels of the custom cave he built behind his house in Burgundy. Michel’s preference for using dedicated sherry casks for maturation (versus casks seasoned with sherry for secondary aging purposes) is still maintained by the estate today. These complex Amontillado casks have lent their dimension to Huard-Guillouet’s already stellar Hors d’Age, resulting in a Calvados that plumbs new depths of maillard-reaction-like lushness while retaining a bright, acidic spark.

The Huard family has lived on the Le Pertyer property in the Suisse-Normand for seven generations; Jean-Francois Guillouet took over in 2012 when his grandfather Michel passed away. Nearly 1,800 trees on standard rootstock (hautes-tiges) grace the 15-hectare property, which is considered the most admired in the AOC Calvados appellation. The soil is loamy, composed of an ideal combination of silt and clay, and about 30 varieties of apples are grown on the property, predominantly from the sweet and bittersweet categories. Jean-Francois ferments and ages his cider for about 8–12 months before it is single distilled in a traveling, wood-fired column still. The spirits then go into large, elongated barrels (stained black by time) or well-seasoned 400-liter barrels ideal for developing complex flavor.