Pommeau is an apple-based aperitif that comes from France. Producers make it by blending fresh apple juice with apple brandy, usually Calvados in Normandy. They then age the blend in oak to let the fruit, alcohol and tannin knit together.

Our approach is to create something fresh and unaged. Instead we blend our award winning Eau de Vie de Cidre with fresh apple juice. This results in a young, crisp, bright spirit with clear orchard freshness and clean aromatic notes. The apple brandy adds quiet warmth sharpening the profile.

This is a collaboration with Cranborne Chase Cider. It uses unsold cider alongside surplus apple juice giving both a new life to both products. It is made with Cox, Browns, Dabinett and Yarlington Mill cider apples, organically grown. 

The spirit reflects our ethos. It respects the grower, the land, and the craft.

Drink it chilled. Pair it with cheese or desserts. Use it in cocktails. It rewards curiosity and careful drinking.

• Limited Edition.
• Bottle size 350ml @22% ABV.
• 35 Calories per 25ml.
• 100 apples used in each bottle.
  

IWSC REVIEW

Delicate scents of red apple juice, vanilla, and wildflower honey lead to a rich palate bursting with juicy apples and subtle yeasty complexity. The finish lingers with a balanced honeyed sweetness.

AWARDS:

Nose: Sweet green apple and pear notes with a hint of caramel followed by a light floral note. The apple brandy brings a quiet warmth that sharpens the edges. The whole profile feels precise and vibrant.

Palate: The texture feels crisp with bright apple notes alongside a soft gentle sweetness, that leads into a light touch of baked apple. The apple brandy gives structure without weight. The acidity keeps everything tight and balanced.

Finish: Smooth, rounded, refreshing leaving your palate ready for another sip.

• Orchard Spirits is a celebration of local abundance, crafted in small, seasonal batches that showcase the best of what our surrounding landscape has to offer.
• Each release is made using surplus or specially selected fruit grown in partnership with nearby growers and orchards, supporting local agriculture while reducing waste.
• From sun-ripened damsons, windfall apples, green walnuts to grape juice lees.
• These eau de vies and spirits are distilled to capture the true character of the fruit at its peak.
• Limited in quantity and rooted in place, Orchard Spirits tell a story of community, seasonality, and the rich flavours of the land.

Pommeau is a fortified apple drink from Normandy and Brittany. Producers blend fresh apple juice with young Calvados or apple spirit. The spirit stops fermentation and locks in the natural sweetness of the juice.

It is a relatively modern creation, when Farmers in Normandy began making it in the late 1970s. The style grew quickly and gained official recognition. Pommeau de Normandie received AOC status in 1991. Brittany followed with its own AOC in 1997.

Traditional pommeau rests in oak for depth. Younger unaged versions keep the fruit crisp. You get natural sweetness, balanced acidity and clear apple character.

It sits between an aperitif and a dessert drink and works well chilled or matched with cheese, pâté or desert.

Best enjoyed neat in a tulip-shaped glass, they are often served slightly chilled as a digestif after meals.

Their delicate aromas also make them excellent companions to cheese, fruit-based desserts, or rich chocolate.

While traditionally sipped, these spirits are also finding new life in modern cocktails, adding a unique, aromatic layer to sours, highballs, and aperitifs.

Whether sipped slowly or mixed creatively, fruit brandies and eaux-de-vie offer a refined, sensory connection to orchard and forest fruit at its peak.

We’ve chosen wax seals over paper or plastic because, let’s be honest they’re just more fun.

Each wax seal is hand-poured, giving every bottle a unique finish that feels like opening a treasure.

Beyond the looks, wax is a more sustainable choice than plastic shrink wrap, and it avoids the fiddly waste of paper seals. It’s our nod to tradition, a bit of theatre, and a touch of eco-friendly flair all rolled into one satisfying pop.

• We do hope that you are happy with your purchase.
• We aim to make the return process as simple as possible.
• We must be notified of damaged goods within 2 days of delivery.
• We will refund you using the method of payment used to make the purchase.
• Goods must be returned unopened, sealed and in the original packaging.
• Downton Distillery Ltd will refund accepted returns within 30 days of you notifying us.
• The postage of the return is the responsibility of the purchaser.
• Loss or damage during transit of goods being returned is the responsibility of the purchaser.

• Please note delivery will require a signature from an over 18.
• All deliveries are sent by signed post, whilst courier will be tracked.
• Deliveries will not be made to minors and delivery services will not complete delivery if they are unsure of the persons age.
• We are unable to leave a package (even in a ‘safe place’) without a signature.
• For UK deliveries please allow 3 - 5 working days from payment.
• The distillery is not responsible for Royal Mail strikes or late deliveries by Royal Mail.