Chartreuse

The most pious of monk liqueurs, Chartreuse (pronounced "shar-trooz") manages to maintain its hallowed reputation thanks to a fortunate disconnection when it comes to the profane color of the same name. Remember, the cordial came first, and the color merely describes it, as well as quite a few lipsticks and nail polishes.

A brilliant lime green, Chartreuse was first made in 1605 by the Carthusian monks of La Grande Chartreuse, a monastery in the French Alps founded by St. Bruno in 1084.

As members of the strictest contemplative order of the Catholic Church, the monks are bound by vows of silence and perpetual prayer. They can neither beg nor work and rely solely on royalties from each bottle of Chartreuse sold. Compagnie Française de la Grande Chartreuse bottles and distributes the cordial, though its execs often grumble about the difficulties of trying to turn a profit for overscrupulous monks.

In 1903, the order of monks was banished from France to Spain by an anticlerical government, and at Tarragona, they again set up to brew their secret formula compounded of elixirs from odd and rare herbs. Although the time it took the monks to grow the needed herbs allowed France to quickly create imitations of this liqueur, Chartreuse managed to maintain itself as what Charles H. Baker called "one of the cordial immortals of all time."

Back in France since 1935, the monks have remained ever possessive of their recipe. In fact, out of nearly 500 Carthusian monks, only three of them know it. To maintain secrecy, these monks blend the cordial in the attic of the current distillery in the village of Voiron. Attic pipes pump the cordial downstairs for distillation, and typical worker bees carry on from there.

A rich digestif, Chartreuse comes in a pale green and yellow. The green version is 110 proof and said to be made from 130 herbs and essences, including sweet flag, orange peel, peppermint oil, dried tops of hyssop, balm, angelica seeds and root, wormwood, tonka bean, and cardamom. Its spicy mint flavor is a bit much for most people, but the yellow version, with its soft honey undertones and lower proof, is more easily swallowed.

Classic cocktails usually call for the yellow version, but nowadays the green is more popular. Try Chartreuse as an herbal accent in Emerald Martinis, Champs Elysées, and No-Names. Regardless of how you use it, remember that Chartreuse has an acquired taste and may be better as a color than a cordial for most imbibers.