LIQUEURS

Nowadays, liqueurs are made worldwide and are served in many ways: by themselves, poured over ice, with coffee, mixed with cream or other mixers to create cocktails, etc. They are often served with or after a dessert. Liqueurs are also used in cooking.

Some liqueurs are prepared by infusing certain woods, fruits, or flowers, in either water or alcohol, and adding sugar or other items. Others are distilled from aromatic or flavoring agents. The distinction between liqueur and spirits (sometimes liquors) is not simple, especially since many spirits are available in a flavored form today. Flavored spirits, however, are not prepared by infusion. Alcohol content is not a distinctive feature. At 15-30%, most liqueurs have a lower alcohol content than spirits, but some liqueurs have an alcohol content as high as 55%. Dessert wine, on the other hand, may taste like a liqueur, but contains no additional flavoring. 

LIQUEURS

A liqueur is an alcoholic beverage that has been flavored with fruit, herbs, nuts, spices, flowers, or cream and bottled with added sugar. Liqueurs are typically quite sweet; they are usually not aged for long but may have resting periods during their production to allow flavors to marry.

The word liqueur comes from the Latin liquifacere (“to liquefy”).

A distinction can be made between liqueurs and the kind of cordials that are made with fruit juice. In some parts of the world, people use the words “cordial” and “liqueur” interchangeably.

Liqueurs date back centuries and are historical descendants of herbal medicines, often those prepared by monks, as Chartreuse or Bénédictine. Liqueurs were made in Italy as early as the 13th century and their consumption was later required at all treaty signings during the Middle Ages.

MARC

Marc is a spirit distilled from pomace wine or from the residue of grape skins and seeds after the grapes have been pressed for wine making. It is manufactured in similar styles in other countries like Italy (Grappa), Portugal (Bagaciera) and Spain (Aguardente). 

FRAMBOISE

Framboise (pronounced /fʀɑ̃bwaz/) (from the French for raspberry) or Frambozenbier (Dutch) is a Belgian lambic beer that is fermented using raspberries. It is one of many modern fruitbeer types that have been inspired by the more traditional kriek beer, made using sour cherries.

Framboise is usually served in a small glass that resembles a champagne glass, only shorter (could also be a goblet). Most framboise beers are quite sweet, though the Cantillon brewery produces a tart version called Rosé de Gambrinus that is based on the traditional kriek style. The Liefmans brewery uses Oud bruin beer instead of lambic to make its high quality framboise beer, resulting in a very different taste. Recently, Framboise has become popular outside of Belgium, and can now be found in pubs and supermarkets all over the world. 

SLIVIVITZ

Slivovitz or Sliwowitz  is a distilled beverage made from Damson plums. Slivovitz is primarily produced in Slavic regions of Central and Eastern Europe, both commercially as well as by many households on an informal, homemade basis. Primary producing nations include Serbia, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Bosnia, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia. It is most popularly consumed in those nations, as well as wherever communities of expatriate from these nations exist. Similar plum brandies are also produced in Switzerland, France, the United States, and Canada, but marketed under other names, such as brandy, Pflümli, or eau de vie.  

KIRSCH

Kirschwasser (pronounced KIRSH-vahs-ər, German for “cherry water”, German pronunciation: [ˈkɪɐ̯ʃvasɐ]) is a clear, colourless fruit brandy traditionally made from double-distillation of morello cherries, a dark-coloured cultivar of the sour cherry. However, the beverage is now also made from other kinds of cherries.

The cherries are fermented complete (that is, including their stones).

Kirschwasser is often simply called Kirsch in both German- and English-speaking countries. 

POIRE WILLIAMS

Poire Williams is a colorless eau de vie made from the Williams pear. It is generally served chilled as an after-dinner drink.

Many producers of Poire Williams include an entire pear inside each bottle. This is achieved by attaching the bottle to a budding pear tree so that the pear will grow inside it.

The Williams pear is known as the Bartlett pear in the United States.

Williamine is brand of Poire Williams; the trademark is owned by Distillerie Louis Morand & Cie, who distill the drink on their premises in Martigny, Canton of Valais, Switzerland from nearby orchards.