Comte Louis de Lauriston VSOP Calvados Domfrontais (42%, OB, 2019)

• ABV: 42%
• Age: 5+ Years Old
• Bottling: OB
• Category: Calvados Domfrontais
• Cost: €45
• Origin: Calvados Comte Louis de Lauriston
• Vintage: Undeclared

What they say

A blend of Calvados aged more than five years in oak casks.
Light amber colour. Rich fruity aromas of apples and pears combined with aromas due to long ageing.
This V.S.O.P. is marked with gourmet hints of vanilla. Supple, long, complex mouth.
To be served with a Livarot cheese or as a digestive

What I say

Purchased from Comte Louis de Lauriston. The small warehouse and shop are located on the road out of Domfront which I have passed by many times. The warehouse acts as a local co-operative for nearby farm producers who can ferment and distill using mobile column stills and then sell distillate to the cellars to allow the cellar masters to determine how to mature and blend or bottle this fabulous array of Calvados Domfrontais. The cellars currently have a liquid treasure trove stretching back to their inception in 1962, including millesimes or vintages from each year. Comte Louis de Lauriston joined with The House of Drouin (Calvados Christian Drouin) in 1992 and the third generation of the Drouin family Guillame Drouin became the chairman of the cellars in 2008.

This is their VSOP expression made from blended Calvados Domfrontais aged for a minimum of 5 years in oak.

My tasting notes:

• Appearance: Dark golden brown (13/20), quick, oily, medium tears leave fine legs.
• Nose: Fruity and ascerbic, red apple, a touch of cherry, tannic oak wood, tobacco, rancio, polished cherry wood or rosewood, herbal chervil?
• Taste: Polished and silky on the tongue and medium-bodied, much more voluptuous on the palate, waxed/polished red apples, hint of toffee apple, pear tarte, fibrous and woody, vanilla and cherry/kirsch.
• Finish: Medium-long, woody, drying grassy hay, sweet and herbal.

Overall

Very well structured, quite slick with great texture but a little ethereal in terms of distinct flavours – a really great blend with a perfect balance of fruit and wood.

Score 85/100

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