The traditional drink of Brittany and Normandy is cider, either a rough, still cider, similar to Somerset scrumpy or the better-known cidre bouché, a naturally sparkling cider sold in tightly-corked bottles. It is available dry (brut) or sweeter (doux). Both are made on the farms where the apples are grown. The apple-juice ferments naturally, clouding over and then clearing as it matures. The type of apple, the growing conditions and the way in which the juice is treated after pressing all affect the flavour of the finished product.

The finest cider is reputed to come from the farms of the Pays d'Auge around Cambremer in the département of Calvados in Normandy. This département is the home of apple brandy – one of France's classic spirits. To make Calvados, mature cider is distilled twice then left in oak casks for many years. Some of the best and mellowest may be up to 50 years old, but 10 to 15 years is the average. It is often drunk as a digestif between courses or at the end of a meal.

Brittany, too, has its equivalent of Calvados, and it is called Lambig: however, it is much rarer and seems to be an extremely well-kept secret. If you can get your hands on it you are in for a treat. Its distinctive appley dryness varies according to who distilled it. Fine de Bretagne is a Lambig that has been aged for six years or more. Again, it is a digestif, to be tasted at the end of a meal. Brittany also produces an alcoholic apple apéritif, pommeau, well worth trying.

Of special note in Brittany are the ciders from Fouesnant, Beg-Meil, and Pleudihen-sur-Rance. If you are travelling via St-Malo, you might like to visit the farm at Pleudihen whose outbuildings house the Musée de la Pomme et du Cidre (Apple and Cider Museum). Before visiting the museum, take a look at the orchard and notice the different varieties of apple trees. The varieties have quaint names such as Chaperonnais, Jeanne Renard, Marie Menard and Doux Évêque. Inside the museum, the apple, its origin, the various varieties, the diseases, cultivation and picking are all explained. At the end there is a film illustrating the different apple-related trades (such as cooperage and hoop-making) and a cider-tasting!

Some Breton cider-producing areas are even pressing for their own appelation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) to guarantee authentic, high-quality local production, as with French wines. Look out for the terms cidre fermier or cidre traditionnel, which should indicate that the cider has been made either on small-holdings or traditionally.

You will soon discover the popularity of cider in Brittany, as there are shelves full of it in the supermarkets. It is a standard accompaniment to a meal of crêpes and may be offered on restaurant menus fixes. In crêperies it is normal to serve it in bowls. Many of the varieties are very dry and taste wonderful.

If you are offered a kir breton it will be cider mixed with a little blackcurrant (cassis) or blackberry (mûre) liqueur.

Poiré, or pear cider, is also produced, but on a small scale and it is not commercially distributed.