DAY ONE VILLAGES & CIDER

Morning

Exploring the rainbow of openair stalls at the market in Pontl’Évêque, famed for its eponymous AOP cheese, is a rendezvous with the epicurean soul of this small riverside town. Follow your nose to Fromagerie René’s stand and buy a square of washed-rind cheese packed in a poplar-wood box. Tastings of thick ambrosial cream made from unpasteurised milk and slow-cooked teurgoule normande, a cinnamon-rice pudding, from La Ferme de la Bourgeoterie are equally fragrant. Drive 10 minutes north in Pays d’Auge to Christian Drouin, a 17th-century farm where the Drouin family have doubledistilled cider to make calvados since 1960. Guided tours take in the apple orchards, artisan distillery and the ageing half-timbered barn where the apple brandy turns mahogany-gold over time in oak casks. calvados-drouin.com

Afternoon

Follow hedgerow-cut lanes to Beaumont-en-Auge. This is where Europe’s last remaining kaleidoscope maker, visiting from Paris in 1976, bought a half-timbered cottage in which to set up shop. In Dominic Stora’s whimsical shop, Après la Pluie, marvel at the handcrafted optical toys. Then, browse neighbouring fashion boutiques and antiques galleries, and grab a bite on the aptly named rue du Paradis. Afterwards, drive 20 minutes south to the village of Cambremer, springboard for the Route du

Cidre driving itinerary, with a Romanesque church and art exhibitions in a medieval grange. Visit the Jardins des Pays d’Auge to see flower gardens evoking the angels, the devil and more. routeducidre.com kaleidoscopesfrance.com lesjardinsdupaysdauge.com

Evening

It’s a 15-minute country lane wiggle past stud farms and cideries to Beuvron-en-Auge. Above the village, admire the 12th-century Chapelle de Clermont then drop down to the square. You might recognise the horseshoe of timbered houses huddled around the old market hall from David Hockney’s Beuvron-enAuge Panorama painting; he lives nearby. Linger over an aperitif at Coiffeur — a bar that was the village hairdresser until 1972. Or head directly to the traditional dining room of Le Pavé d’Auge for dinner. Chef Jerome Bansard champions the region’s earthy riches, but his refined Norman cuisine is soufflé-light. Don’t skip Normandy’s famous four-cheese course: camembert, neufchâtel, pont-l’évêque and livarot — eaten in that order, with a dollop of thick crème d’Isigny. pavedauge.com