CHARTREUSE - 9th Centenary Liqueur - 2024 Edition - 47% ABV
The Order of the Chartreuse had existed for over 500 years 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 of an "Elixir" nicknamed the "Elixir of Long Life." This mysterious manuscript was likely the work of a 16th-century alchemist with profound knowledge of herbs, skilled in selecting, assembling, infusing, and macerating 130 plants to create a perfectly balanced and exceptional tonic. The remarkably complex recipe was initially only partially understood at Vauvert. In the early 18th century, this precious document was sent to the Order's Mother House, La Grande Chartreuse, nestled in the mountains near Grenoble. It was there that the Monastery's Apothecary, Brother Jérôme Maubec, managed to unlock the secret and in 1737 wrote the practical formula, finalized in 1764, allowing the preparation of this precious Elixir. In 1903, the Chartreuse distillery was nationalized by the French government and the monks were expelled. However, during the 1929 bankruptcy, the monks recovered the Chartreuse brand, returned to the Fourvoirie distillery, built in 1860 near the monastery, and were able to relaunch the authentic production of Chartreuse liqueurs. Despite a devastating landslide in 1935 that transferred production to Voiron, it is there that the tradition continues today, guaranteeing unmatched quality and authenticity.
The rigorous selection, meticulous grinding, and blending of the secret herbs, plants, and other medicinal botanicals used in the production of the liqueurs are carried out with ancestral expertise by only two monks in the monastery. Once the flawless blend is made, the ingredients are sent to Voiron where they first macerate in an exceptionally pure alcohol, specially selected for this recipe. They are then precisely distilled before being aged for several years in immense oak barrels. This unique process takes place in a maturation cellar renowned for having the longest and finest aging in the world, thus ensuring an unparalleled aromatic richness and gustatory complexity.
The 9th Centenary Liqueur was specially created in 1984 to commemorate the 900th anniversary of the Chartreuse Monks and the historic founding of the Grande Chartreuse Monastery in 1084, symbolizing the exceptional spiritual and artisanal heritage of this monastic order.
