Review: Humboldt Distillery Organic Apple Brandy

Humboldt Distillery is bringing the spirit of California to the wider spirits world. By prioritizing local and organic ingredients, their aim is to both capture the beauty of their local community and remain ever-mindful of their environmental impact on the world. It’s a fine mission that has already produced fine results in the form of their USDA organic vodka, which is the best-selling organic vodka in the state. Today we’ll be taking a closer look at the sixth spirit in their portfolio, Humboldt Organic Apple Brandy, a distillery-only release which we’re told is “inspired by the natural beauty surrounding the distillery on California’s Redwood Coast.”

Opening with a light bouquet of crisp green apples and fresh raisins on the nose, it soon follows with a gentle and almost silky mouth feel. The taste of apples really lingers in a pleasant way that doesn’t have the saccharine-like quality of artificial flavoring or the excessive sweetness of Fuji apples. Instead, the faintest alcohol influence punches on the front end before the sweet fruit notes take the wheel and steer each sip toward a lightly seasoned apple pie finish.

While it isn’t particular robust in any one category (save for the healthy dose of crisp apple flavor) it feels as though that’s part of the point: delivering a refreshing tasting experience that presents the fruit from local orchards in the most unfettered way. Each bottle contains over 20lbs of apples and the majority of casks this apple brandy was aged in were originally used bourbon barrels from Sonoma Distilling Company. If you’ve ever been to an orchard you know how tempting it can be to eat a half-bushel of apples in a single sitting, but with Humboldt Distillery’s new limited release you can let the imp of the perverse run wild, as this organic apple brandy contains zero artificial colors or flavors, making it a superb, boozy substitute.

80 proof.

B / $30 / humboldtdistillery.com

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