Calvados is a type of Brandy named after its home region in Normandy. Literally speaking, it's apple cider distilled into Brandy, but, in reality, it's much more than that.
For starters, it's not made from just one kind of apple; hundreds of different apple varieties are permitted in its production. And not only does the Spirit differ by area in which the apples are grown, the production and aging methods also vary.
In a similar fashion as their spirited neighbors, Calvados' styles can be as binary as Cognac versus Armagnac. Plus, occasionally, Calvados can even be made from pear cider or perry.