A little while back I hosted a Brandy tasting. There were a couple of Cognacs, one Armagnac, one from Spain and also a Calvados. Whilst brandy comes from a grape base, Calvados (if you apply a broader use of the term brandy) comes from apples. So talk moved on to the possibility of English apple brandy, or brandy itself. The south of England is well known for it's apples and cider and so it's only a short step to distil to make an English apple brandy. We also have a few vines down there too and so making brandy from wine should also be possible. Although I've never drank any brandy from England I had done a bit research in case this question arose and I noted that Bertram Bulmer was first to restart brandy production in the 1984.
Sommerset Royal came next from Julian Temperley, a Sommerset cider maker who started distilling from Brympton d'Evercy House near Yeovil in 1989. They are still going strong today. To celebrate a 4 year legal fight in Brussels to get the grant of a PGI - Protected Geographical Indication (like an Appellation Controle in France) - so they can actually use the words Sommerset Cider Brandy on the bottle - they commissioned Damien Hirst to design a label for their 20 year old.
Well it turns out one of the guests at the tasting has been able to procure a sample of the 10 year old from the Somerset Cider distillery for me. Thanks Richard! And when we do another brandy tasting I'm sure to include one of these.
Deep golden in colour.
Distinct apple from the off. Slight oiliness. A slight hint of toffee or butterscotch. Clean. Fresh and vibrant. The nose opens up after a while in the glass and becomes softer.
Clean then sharp and spice. Crisp apple fruit with a hint of balancing bitterness.
The spice pools and dries in the middle of the tongue whilst salivating at the sides. A long clear and clean finish.
Very impressive stuff. Need to spend some time with it to appreciate the balance and depth of flavours. Will visit it if in the area.
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