Château du Breuil Fine

Nose: Crisp apple cider underpinned with notes of oak cask. There is also a fresh grassy aroma and a hint of something stronger than cider - as if a half teaspoon of good young cognac has been added to the nosing glass. Palate: Soft, creamy arrival - a very gentle entry with semi-sweet notes of apple, grassy herbs, raisins and thinned honey. The faintest possible amount of warm cinnamon and white pepper arises in the development. The texture is soft and but not thick. Finish: Medium/short. The apple note is there until the very end and the aftertaste is bittersweet (but with the emphasis on the sweet note). A pleasant and very easy to drink spirit with very little alcohol heat. This is the baby of the Château du Breuil range but that does not equate with cheap or immature. It's fresh, crisp and perfectly acceptable, but be aware that the older and more expensive expressions are better, and that Château du Breuil itself, while a good producer, is not the top of the totem pole. Delicious neat, on ice, with a dash of soda water or in a hot toddy. I wouldn't use calvados as a mixer in most cases as its character is subtle and best allowed to stand alone. It is also a fantastic cooking ingredient that combines excellently with almonds and goes very well in a chicken casserole or in a sauce for roast pork. In whisky terms I'd equate this to a good quality mid-range blended scotch - something like Dewars 12 or Johnnie Walker Black. "Average" : 78/100 (2.75 stars)

Ah man I hate when you smell something you know you've smelt before a long time ago which is very distinctive and if only you could remember what it was people would be yeah that's it... so distinctive but so frustratingly unable to be labelled! Thanks to @cascode I'm tasting my first in living memory (which is different to how long I have lived as my memory is very shite longer term...) calvados. This is what I love about this swapping programme getting to try heaps of different left field stuff. This is something I on paper shouldn't like but weirdly I don't mind it.. it's not like drinking a spirit more a low abv liquor. Now don't get me wrong i'm not about to buy a bottle but it's almost like a summer quafer. I'm not going to rate this one as I don't know how, i like to drink a lot of a type of spirit to get the feel of it before I do. Thanks @cascode!

Strong (!), fruity taste with a light touch of cinnamon, and the apple is unmistakenly there. Takes a bit of getting used to initially, but then drinks more smoothly with each sip.

My first calvados tasting. I enjoyed it. It's very very pleasant on nose, delicate on taste and medium to long on aftertaste. I'll definitely buy one more!

Intense apple aroma, a lit bit peppery in taste.

Ed