Comte Louis de Lauriston Calvados

Comte Louis de Lauriston Calvados is a French Calvados brand based in Domfront, in the Normandy region, where the cellars of the 'verger normand' produce, in collaboration with the Drouin family, one of the finest signatures of Calvados Domfrontais, as well as Normandy ciders, poirés and pommeau. The brand is named after Count Louis de Lauriston, who in the early 1960s was Secretary General of the local farmers' federation and who intervened on behalf of clandestine distillers during a famous 1962 raid by excise officials. The house was founded to put an end to the illicit distilling of Calvados in the Domfront region, and today its cellars hold forgotten treasures from that period of clandestine production: a unique range of vintages covering several decades. The Domfrontais is a bocage landscape of small family farms, sunken lanes and impenetrable hedges, with mixed woodland and hilly pastures that historically lent themselves to clandestine activity. Calvados was often hurriedly distilled there on stormy winter nights when no officials were likely to venture out to check on the legality of the operation. The turning point came on a night in 1962, when zealous excise-men burst in on the bootleggers and caught them red-handed. Within an hour dozens of neighbouring farmers had arrived, mysteriously alerted that one of their number was in trouble. Outnumbered, the excise officials were forced to line up against a stable wall in the glare of the headlights of tractors and cars drawn up in a semi-circle around them. Fearing that the situation might deteriorate, some of those present sent for Count Louis de Lauriston, then Secretary General of the local farmers' federation, to ask for his help. The brand's production is rooted in the Calvados Domfrontais appellation, which is distinguished by the use of pears alongside apples. Apples and pears are blended and distilled to produce what the house describes as the rarest collection of Calvados Domfrontais vintages. Alongside its Calvados, the house also produces Normandy Cidre, Poiré and Pommeau de Normandie. The range is presented as a series of millésimes (vintages) spanning several decades, a distinctive feature that sets the brand apart from mass-market Calvados producers. The commercial operation is run by C. Drouin S.A.S., registered at 42, rue du Général-Giraud in Rouen, with production and cellars at Rue du Mont-Saint-Michel in Domfront. Guillaume Drouin is the publication director and editorial manager, and the contact address for the brand is guillaumedrouin@calvados-lauriston.com. The brand maintains a bilingual and multilingual website (French, English, German, Italian) with sections on history, appellations, the fabrication process, the product range, news, and visits and location, and it operates an online shop with a newsletter and promotional offers. The house is positioned as an artisanal, heritage-driven Normandy producer whose identity is inseparable from the story of the 1962 raid and the decades of clandestine distillation that preceded it.

The history of Comte Louis de Lauriston Calvados is inseparable from the history of clandestine distilling in the Domfrontais, the bocage country around Domfront in Normandy. The region has always been the cradle of agriculture on a family scale, marked by small farms separated by sunken lanes and impenetrable hedges. With its mixed woodland and pastures on hilly terrain, the Domfrontais lent itself to clandestine activities; Calvados was often hurriedly distilled there on stormy winter nights when no officials were likely to venture abroad to check on the legality of the operation. This came to a head on a famous night in 1962, when a group of zealous excise-men burst in on the bootleggers and caught them red-handed. Within an hour dozens of neighbouring farmers had arrived, mysteriously alerted to the fact that one of their number was in trouble. Outnumbered, the excise officials were forced to line up against a stable wall in the glare of the headlights of tractors and cars drawn up in a semi-circle around them. Fearing that the situation might deteriorate, some of those present sent for Count Louis de Lauriston, then Secretary General of the local farmers' federation, to ask for his help in finding a solution. The brand was founded to put an end to the illicit distilling of Calvados in the Domfront region. Rather than simply suppressing the practice, the initiative channelled it into a legal, organised house. The cellars of the Calvados Comte Louis de Lauriston today possess forgotten treasures dating back to this period of clandestine production: a unique range of vintages covering several decades. This vintage library is the commercial and cultural heart of the brand. In the present day, the cellars of the 'verger normand' at Domfront produce, in collaboration with the Drouin family, one of the most beautiful signatures of Calvados Domfrontais, as well as Cidres, Poirés and Pommeau de Normandie. The commercial entity behind the brand is C. Drouin S.A.S., registered at 42, rue du Général-Giraud in Rouen, with the production site at Rue du Mont-Saint-Michel in Domfront. Guillaume Drouin serves as publication director and editorial manager. The brand maintains a multilingual website covering its history, appellations, fabrication process, product range, news, and visits, and sells online with a newsletter and promotional offers.

• 1962

  A famous night in 1962: excise-men raided clandestine distillers in the Domfrontais; neighbouring farmers rallied and Count Louis de Lauriston, then Secretary General of the local farmers' federation, was called in to help resolve the standoff.

• The Calvados Comte Louis de Lauriston cellars were founded to put an end to illicit distilling of Calvados in the Domfront region.

• The house today holds a unique range of vintages covering several decades, drawn from the period of clandestine production.

Artisanal, heritage-driven Normandy Calvados Domfrontais house known for rare vintage bottlings and a storied connection to the end of clandestine distilling in the Domfrontais.

• Calvados Domfrontais

  Apple-and-pear brandy from the Calvados Domfrontais appellation, the house's signature category.

• Calvados vintages (millésimes)

  A rare collection of vintage Calvados Domfrontais spanning several decades.

• Cidre de Normandie

  Normandy cider produced alongside the Calvados range.

• Poiré de Normandie

  Normandy perry produced by the house.

• Pommeau de Normandie

  Normandy pommeau, a mistelle of apple must and Calvados.

1. 1Calvados Domfrontais à Domfront | Comte Louis de Lauristoncalvados-lauriston.com
2. 2The history of Calvados Comte Louis de Lauriston: An unusual storycalvados-lauriston.com
3. 3L'Histoire des Calvados Comte Louis de Lauristoncalvados-lauriston.com
4. 4Über uns - Comte Louis de Lauristoncalvados-lauriston.com
5. 5Comte Louis de Lauriston Calvados - Wikidatawikidata.org