AOC Pommeau

Traditionally, in western France, the fruitiest cider apple juices (or pomaces) were laced with cider brandy so as to preserve their flavour throughout the year.
This operation, known as "mutage", was done on the quiet on the family farm and for centuries the method was a closely guarded secret, and the result the local aperitif, called Pommeau (as in “pomme”, meaning apple).

In the seventies, a number of producers adopted a method for making the drink and decided to produce it as Pommeau de Normandie. However, having no legal existence, it was unsaleable. Until, that is, it was granted a dispensation in 1981, enabling it to come on the market.

The following year the Association Nationale Interprofessionnelle des Producteurs de Pommeau (ANIPP) was set up. By that time, there were 15 producers producing 12,000 bottles. Two years on, sales had risen to 150,000 bottles.

In 1986, the conditions for producing Pommeau de Normandie were set out in an official order and it won Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée status on April 10, 1991. A syndicate Pommeau bottle was created, identified by its specially engraved logo, and is still used by many professionals.
The agricultural framework law of January 2006 led to a review of the specifications of the AOC approved by Decree n°2099-1350 on 29 October 2009.

Pommeau de Normandie now mobilizes both small producers and large merchants. In 2010, a total volume of 700,000 bottles was marketed by some seventy producers.

An idea that has caught on

Meanwhile, producers in Brittany were doing research in order to typify and characterize their Pommeau. They selected the best cider apple varieties and defined its specifications. Pommeau de Bretagne won Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée status by official order dated May 31, 1997. A review of its specifications has been approved on 10 April 2009 by Decree n°2009-399.

In 2010, about 150,000 bottles were marketed by ten different producers.

Pommeau du Maine obtained its AOC status on 29 October 2009 by decree setting out the conditions of production. It involves 8 producers who have joined together in a trade association and is part of the collective Pommeau communications at IDAC.