Calva Kick — Vodka Meets French Orchard Oak
What You’ll Need:
A Deer Jimmy’s® bottle filled with vodka and aged on French Calvados barrel chips. After aging: freshly pressed apple juice (cloudy, not sweetened), a dash of lemon juice, optional drop of honey or maple syrup, ice, and a rocks glass.
Step One: Start with the Right Wood
This cocktail begins with an orchard — not the drinkable kind, but the one locked deep inside a French Calvados barrel. Fill your Deer Jimmy’s® bottle with vodka and let it rest on calvados oak chips. Over the course of three to five weeks, the spirit will pull crisp apple, soft tannins, and a hint of French countryside into every drop. The oak doesn’t just add flavor. It adds origin.
Step Two: Craft a Crisp Foundation
Once your vodka has aged into something golden and gently aromatic, it’s time to build the Calva-Kick. This isn’t a sweet apple cocktail. It’s bright, sharp, and grounded. Pour the aged vodka over a large ice cube. Add a splash of fresh apple juice — the cloudy kind with pulp and backbone. Just a touch of lemon juice brings lift. If you prefer a little smoothness, swirl in a teaspoon of honey or maple syrup. Stir gently. Let it settle.
Step Three: Sip the Orchard
The first taste is clean and cool — vodka with just enough structure to carry flavor. Then the calvados influence rises: tart apple, warm oak, a dry edge that feels more like cider than juice. It finishes with a crisp snap, leaving behind something earthy and elegant. It’s the kind of cocktail you sip outdoors, even if you're inside. A breath of orchard air, distilled.
A French Kick with a Dutch Twist
Calva-Kick is both playful and grown-up. It takes the soft neutrality of vodka and hits it with orchard oak, citrus, and raw apple character. It's refreshing without being weak, and refined without trying too hard. This is what happens when patience meets purpose — and when barrels that once held Normandy’s finest get a second life in your hands.
