🥃 Bénédictine

Bénédictine is a French herbal liqueur from Normandy, made since 1864 from 27 plants and spices. It was created by the Fécamp wine merchant Alexandre Le Grand, and it is 40% ABV. The brand now belongs to Bacardi. Although catalogues often label it a "bitter", it is a liqueur.

In 1863 Le Grand reconstructed the recipe, and in 1864 he launched the brand and registered a trademark bearing the letters D.O.M. – Deo Optimo Maximo, "To God, most good, most great". The story of the monk Dom Bernardo Vincelli, who supposedly invented the elixir in 1510, is a legend that, according to available data, Le Grand himself promoted in his advertising. After the fire of 1892 the Palais Bénédictine in Fécamp was rebuilt and was ready by 1900.

The plants named include saffron, honey, cinnamon, angelica, hyssop and juniper; the full list is kept secret. According to France Today, the process involves four bases (maceration, infusion, single and double distillation in copper stills), a blend, eight months in oak, then honey and saffron are added and the liqueur rests for another four months. This is the account of a single publication, so the timings are given with attribution; that several distillations are used is confirmed by other sources too.

In the 1930s the drier B&B appeared, a blend of Bénédictine and brandy (Difford's Guide dates it to 1937). Ownership changed over time: in the 1980s the brand was bought by Martini & Rossi, and from the early 1990s by Bacardi (the dates differ between sources). The strength used to be 43%; it is now 40% ABV.

Why this matters to you. Bénédictine is not a bitter and not a medicine: it is a sweet liqueur containing alcohol, so judge it like any other alcoholic drink. The story of the monk is a nineteenth-century marketing legend. Check the label: Bénédictine and B&B are different products. The WHO reminds us that no level of alcohol consumption is safe.