Bauchant is a sweet liqueur made from Curaçao orange extracts combined with aged Napoléon brandies. It is triple-distilled to give it a strong orange fragrance and taste. It comes in a rounded, dark brown glass bottle. Bauchant is made by the Maison Roullet-Fransac in Chermignac, France (Chermignac is in the heart of the Cognac region.)…
French Liqueurs
Cassis
Cassis is a dark purple liqueur made from Black Currants and an alcohol, such as Rum or Brandy. It is usually used in a mixed drink, rather than drunk straight up. There are many different brands of Cassis, including Mathilde and Marie Brizard. Cassis is 15 to 25% abv. Crème de Cassis Crème de Cassis…
Cédratine
Cédratine is an after-dinner liqueur made from citrons. It is usually served in stem glasses. It is made from sugar syrup, and citron extracts. Some versions also contain E102 colouring, a yellow food dye. Cédrat is sometimes mistakenly translated in English as meaning “cedar.” In fact, it means “Citron.” Specifically, it is Buddha’s Hands citrons…
Chartreuse
Chartreuse is a French liqueur made from a mixture of 130 vegetable products soaked in alcohol, which is then distilled, then mixed with distilled honey and sugar. The alcohol is then put in oak casks, and let mature. Profits from the sale of the liqueur are used to support the Chartreuse monastery at Grenoble, France….
Cointreau
Cointreau is a liqueur made with peel from sweet oranges from Spain and/or Brazil, and peel of bitter oranges from Curaçao. It is distilled in copper. Though it is a clear liqueur, it turns opaque when poured onto ice. Cointreau is not as sweet as Grand Marnier. Cointreau is 40% abv. Cooking Tips Drain baby…
Coutou
Coutou is an orange-flavoured, amber-coloured liqueur made in France. It is made from Armagnac infused with orange peels. Coutou is 40% abv. Cooking Tips It can be drunk straight up, on the rocks or used in cooking.
Crème de Mûre
Crème de Mûre is a thick, sweet liqueur made from alcohol, blackberries and honey. There are many different brands, including Marie Brizard and Edmond Briottet. The alcohol content averages about 20%.
Crème de Noyau
A liqueur based on the kernels on certain fruits, such as peaches or cherries. If this sounds odd, remember that peaches and cherries are closely related to almonds, and so have a lot of flavour that can be extracted. Literature & Lore Noyau is a French word meaning “kernel, pit or core”. It is closely…
Crème de Pêche
Crème de Pêche is made by infusing peaches in alcohol. There are many brands. Some are clear, some are a light yellow colour, some like that by Briottet are more amber-coloured. Alcohol content is 18% abv. Cooking Tips Can be drizzled over ice cream or fruit salads. To drink, usually added to a sparkling wine…
French Liqueurs
By French law, to be called a Liqueur, the drink must have a minimum 15% alcohol content, and a minimum sugar content of 20%. If a liqueur in France is called a “crème”, the minimum sugar content must be 40%. 22% of the French liqueur sold worldwide is Crème de Cassis.
Grande Mathilde XO
Grande Mathilde XO is an orange liqueur made from cognac that has been aged for at least 8 years. It is made by Gabriel & Andreu in France near Cognac, and sold in a tall, clear glass bottle.
Mandarine Impériale
Mandarine Impériale is a yellowish-orange liqueur made in Corsica from alcohol, orange skin, mandarin oils, sugar, water and other ingredients that are secret. The mandarin oil comes from Paris or from the Grasse region. The orange skins come from oranges grown by the company right there in Corsica. The skins are let steep in neutral…
Mandarine Napoléon
Mandarine Napoléon is an orange-flavoured liqueur with a cognac base. Mandarin peel from Sicily is chopped finely and steeped in cognac, then filtered, then added to alcohol, sugar, and 21 spices and herbs (they are secret, of course, but supposedly include clover, coriander, cumin and green tea.) The alcohol is then distilled three times and…
Patxaran
Patxaran is a clear, reddish-brown, sweet digestive liqueur made in the Basque areas of Spain such as Navarre, and somewhat in the bordering Basque-speaking Pyrenées area of France. Thus, you will see both Spanish and French terms used in discussing it. It is made from sloe plums let steep for several months (between 1 and…
Poirelle
Poirelle is pear-flavoured liqueur made from essences distilled from William Pears. These essences are combined with cognacs that have been aged at least 10 years in wood. It’s made by the Maison Roullet-Fransac in Chermignac, France (Chermignac is in the heart of the Cognac region.) The company was founded in 1838 and is still family…
Vin de Noix
Vin de Noix is a French liqueur made from “green walnuts” — made from immature walnuts that haven’t ripened yet. The liqueur is a dark brown colour, with a touch of astringency in its taste. It is not as sweet or thick as the Italian equivalent liqueur, nocino. It is served as an aperitif, in…