Chartreuse

Europe’s most mysterious Liqueur, made by monks, divined by alchemists.

The Order of the Carthusian Monks is a cloistered religious order of the Roman Catholic Church founded by Bruno of Cologne in the year 1084. The French diplomat and military Marshal François Annibal d’Estrées gave the monks his secret recipe for medicinal Liqueur in 1605 in the form of an alchemist manuscript that was old even at the time. They originally produced it for their own use, but began producing it commercially in 1737. They are still the sole producers today, crafting a handful of varieties with the proceeds funding church activities.

Chartreuse Green Liqueur is the original formulation — with small tweaks by Brother Gérome Maubec in 1737. The exact formula is kept strictly secret but is said to contain one hundred and thirty ingredients. Over the years only a handful of ingredients have managed to slip out… things like cinnamon, mace, lemon balm, dried hyssop, peppermint, thyme, costmary, arnica flowers, genepi, and angelica root. But that’s just the tip of the Chartreuse iceberg. The strongly pungent, herbaceous flavor profile is distinctive and difficult to find. It is a singular experience.

Smartass Corner:
The Chartreuse mountains give their name to the Monastic order and the Liqueur. Though commonly mistaken for the reverse, the color chartreuse is named after the color of the alcohol.