Calvados is a brandy of apples, sometimes of pears, produced in north-western France by over 1550 parishes of Normandy and Brittany, in the hinterland of the Pays de la Loire. Normandy is the productive epicenter, home of some of the best orchards in Europe. In 1942 10 districts of the Normandy and Brittany regions were protected by their own appellation, since 1984 united in a single Calvados AOC appellation. The Spanish name is probably due to a legend which tells that, in 1588, the Spanish ship El Salvador loaded with apple brandy was demolished off the Norman coast. The appellation includes 2 regional variants: Calvados Pays d'Auge where a more limited production is favored in favor of higher quality and Calvados Domfrontais, produced with an important percentage of pears. Except that the Calvados Pays d'Auge, doubly distilled in semi-continuous Charentais-style stills, all the other calvados are produced by single distillation. It follows ageing in barrels of at least 2 years to develop more complex aromas and a more velvety sensation on the palate. A curiosity: the wines produced in the same region are also characterized by the appellation Calvados, but PGI.