CHARTREUSE - Cuvée Marseille 1921-2021 - 54%
The Order of the Chartreuse already had more than 500 years of history when, in 1605, at a Chartreuse monastery in Vauvert, a small suburb of Paris, the monks received a precious gift from Duke François Hannibal d'Estrées: an ancient manuscript revealing the recipe for an "Elixir," named "Elixir of Long Life." This mysterious manuscript was very likely the work of a 16th-century alchemist, with expert knowledge in botany and mastery of the art of assembling, infusing, and macerating 130 carefully selected herbs to create a unique and perfectly balanced tonic. The complexity of this recipe meant that only certain fragments were understood and used at Vauvert. At the beginning of the 18th century, this manuscript was transferred to the Order's Mother House, located at the Grande Chartreuse, in the mountains near Grenoble. It was there that the Monastery's Apothecary, Brother Jérôme Maubec, managed to solve the mystery and, in 1737, wrote the practical formula for making the Elixir, finalized in 1764. In 1903, following the nationalization of the distillery by the French government, the monks were forced to leave. However, after the 1929 bankruptcy, they recovered ownership of the Chartreuse brand, returning to their original distillery, built in 1860 at Fourvoirie, near the Monastery, to relaunch the authentic production of Chartreuse liqueurs. In 1935, a landslide almost completely destroyed Fourvoirie, forcing production to move to Voiron, where the distillery is still located today.
The rigorous selection, precise grinding, and meticulous blending of the secret herbs, medicinal plants, and other botanicals used to make the liqueurs are carried out in the monastery by two highly skilled monks. After this process, the ingredients are sent to Voiron where they are macerated in a highly selected alcohol before being carefully distilled. The resulting liqueurs then age for several years in huge oak barrels, placed in the aging cellar, renowned for some of the longest maturation times in the world, ensuring incomparable quality and aromatic profile.
While working on the book "Chartreuse, the liqueur," the authors revealed, thanks to the private archives of the Reverend Father of the Grande Chartreuse, many pages long forgotten from this centuries-old saga. These precious accounts confirmed the historical existence of a distillery not only in Paris but also in Marseille, at 15 rue de l’Obélisque, now rue Louis Maurel. The exceptional event titled "Marseille 1921-2021" emotionally celebrates the centenary of the return of the Carthusians to France, embodied by the revival of their emblematic distillery in Marseille in 1921.
This exclusive edition of Chartreuse will be available only for tasting starting summer 2022 in our tasting rooms Clos des Spiritueux, located above our shop, offering an authentic and immersive experience to lovers and connoisseurs of this legendary liqueur.
