Eaux-de-vie are brandies made with any fruit apart from grapes. Translated as ‘water of life’, most eaux-de-vie are bottled without ageing to preserve the integrity of the fruit character. Fruit brandies are made with a bewildering array of raw ingredients – indeed, there can be few fruits that have not at one time or another had an enterprising distiller trying to make an eau-de-vie out of them.
