Michel Huard Hors d'Age Calvados (750ml)

Pinning down the term hors d’age is a moving target, but this bottling by Michel Huard stands at the older end, with a minimum of 10-year-old spirits, along with a significant percentage that is more than 25 years old. Golden-colored, it opens with a gorgeous, old-time nose - rustic in the best sense of the word. There’s woodiness here, from the nose to the finish, but it’s an attractive virtue, with deep and well-integrated. There’s balanced aromas and flavors of tarte tatin, with notes of pepper and even salted licorice. In the mouth, it’s expansive, like a blanket in the mouth that says 'comfort me with apples' all the way through the long finish. This might be the Calvados to convert a bourbon drinker to the pleasures of apple brandy. An excellent value to boot for such a high-quality spirit. (AOC Calvados, 40% abv.) (JW)