Calvados

[naomi24]

Has anyone ever made it and was it successful? If so your method and any special tips would be very much appreciated. Thank you. :o)

[jomifl]

Do you have a licence, a calvados still and do you live in normandy, If no to any of these questions then I'm afraid you can't make calvados. Try cognac, you can use cheap wine as your feedstock.

[Buenchico]

You can't make apple brandy without distillation. That presents two problems:

Firstly, it's easy to end up with the wrong sort of alcohol (i.e. methanol instead of ethanol). Drinking it could result in severe illness, organ damage, blindness or even death.

Secondly, it's a criminal offence (under Section 12(1) of the Alcoholic Liquor Duties Act 1979) to manufacture spirits without an excise licence.

Chris

[naomi24]

So I would need to apply for a licence in France and live in Normandy?

But I live in England, so who is going to hike me off to jail for making Calvados without a French licence and a house in Normandy? (I have a house in Spain - will that do?).

Cognac's no good - I have trees full of apples to use. The cider's gurgling as we speak and I was trying to think of something different that I could use the fruit for. Ahhh - Calvados! What else?!!

[naomi24]

Ah, now that makes more sense, Chris. No Caldavos then so back to the drawing board.

Thanks guys. :o)

[jomifl]

I once had several gallons of homemade wine that wasn't drinkable so I distilled it. It produce a spirit that was very much like brandy and was about 45%w/v. It all got drunk and so did drinkers. It is however illegal to distill alcohol in the UK, but you can freeze the water an centrifuge off the alcohol using an upright spin drier.

[naomi24]

What's that Helen?

[bednobs]

how about apple crumble :)

[naomi24]

Got the apples for those in the freezer bednobs. :o)

[woofgang]

what you can do is make the cider then put it in open container sin the freezer and let it start to freeze. the water will freeze forst, so scoop our and drain ths lush and do it again, eventually you will be left with a much reduced volume of liwuid with a greater percentage of alcohol. So far as i am aware this is not illegal...pretty boring tho!!!!

[naomi24]

That sounds a bit complicated Jomifl. :o/

[jomifl]

Thats why I distilled it

[naomi24]

Sounds it woofgang. Maybe I should stick to Waitrose for the spirits. :o)

[naomi24]

Helen, I've been to Normandy many times, but I can't say I know that drink. I'll google it. Thanks.

[Buenchico]

While it's highly unlikely that a guy from HMRC would come knocking on your door to inspect the contents of your spin drier (as per Jomifl's method) or of your freezer (as per Woofgang's technique), the relevant legislation actually covers those methods, since it states:
"No person shall manufacture spirits, whether by distillation of a fermented liquor OR BY ANY OTHER PROCESS, unless he holds an excise licence for that purpose under this section (referred to in this Act as a “distiller’s licence”)".

Chris

[jomifl]

chris, when did they slip that 'or by any other process' clause in? might as well stick to the traditional method. Instructions by Joan Baez.

[naomi24]

Oh well, looks like my attempt to investigate the 'spirit world' was on this occasion rather short lived. Back to Waitrose it is. Thanks Chris.

Helen, thanks. :o)