Description
In 1605, the Duke of Estrees entrusted the Carthusians with a manuscript bearing a mysterious recipe made up of 130 plants that could give rise to an “Elixir of long life”. For more than a century and a half, the Carthusians will develop this recipe which will give birth, thanks in particular to Brother Jérôme Maubec, to a final product fixed in 1764 called “Plant Elixir of the Grande Chartreuse”. It was quickly distributed as a care product to local populations, especially during the cholera crisis of 1832. Brother Charles was the first to market it in local markets, descending on a donkey from the monastery. Since 1764, the recipe for the Elixir has remained unchanged.
Ingredients
Alcohol, sugar, water, vegetable substances (130 plants, bark, roots, spices and flowers)
ELABORATION
The preparation of the Herbal Elixir requires several weeks and is done in three stages: distillation to obtain the aroma, maceration which gives the natural color and extraction which makes it possible to collect the beneficial properties of the 130 plants, flowers, bark, roots and spices that compose it. Its virtues lie primarily in the use of plants in their natural state.
TASTING NOTES
It is a cordial, a digestive and a very effective tonic:
- Pure in a teaspoon
- In herbal tea or hot toddy with honey and lemon
- A few drops on a piece of sugar, on a meringue
- In a cup of water in case of fatigue, discomfort or indisposition
- A few drops in a cocktail to bring a herbaceous note
