14 things you didn’t know about Crème de Menthe to celebrate Crème de Menthe Day today

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To celebrate Crème de menthe Day 2021, we’ve prepared a list of 14 things you might not know about this green liqueur. We also share a recommendation of a French crème de menthe from a French spirits importer and a cocktail recipe.

  1. The traditional technique for making crème de menthe involves steeping dried mint leaves in alcohol.

  2. Its invention is often wrongly attributed to Emile Giffard in 1885. He was a dispensing pharmacist who distributed a white coloured, minty flavoured, pure and clear liqueur to customers of the Grand Hotel in Angers. The Giffard brand still exists today.

  3. It was actually invented by two brothers in 1796, Jean and Pierre Get, who were heirs to a large French distillery. They created Get Peppermint (pronounced Jet) by combining alcohol with strong mint.

  4. Get Peppermint is now more often known as Get 27, which referred to the original percentage of alcohol, which has since been reduced.

  5. Get 27 is now sold in over 122 countries.

  6. The minty liqueur can be used in cocktails, well-known ones being the Grasshopper and the Stinger.

  7. The Grasshopper was created by Philibert Guichet Jr. in either 1919 (or perhaps during prohibition in the 1920s) at the second oldest restaurant in New Orleans: Tujague’s. It won 2nd prize at a New York cocktail competition.

     

    Crème de menthe
    Image: Tasting Table

     

  8. The Stinger was also invented in the USA and was popular during the American Prohibition because the mint flavour could mask the bad taste of the poor quality brandies available at the time.

  9. It is is a key ingredient in the popular South African shot the Springbokkie.

  10. The liqueur can also be used in cooking as a flavouring.

  11. There are 2 Australian companies who makes the green drink, Baitz and Vok.

    crème de menthe

  12. It comes in both a green and a clear version (which is called white).

    crème de menthe

  13. Agatha Christie’s famous detective Hercule Poirot drank it.

  14. Apparently (we haven’t been able to confirm this as we don’t have the right contacts), crème de menthe is the last drink of mobsters before they go to jail.

 

Crème de menthe recommendation and cocktail recipe

 

Emmanuel Condé from Cerbao and Spirits of France recommends the crème de menthe Massenez which he says is “as marvellous as it is unknown! It is preferred by the best professionals, bartenders and sommeliers throughout the world. This year, I propose a white crème de menthe“

Emmanuel’s cocktail recommendation is the classic “stinger cocktail”, with a Cognac VS from François Voyer for example:

50ml Cognac
20ml White Crème de menthe.

Pour the ingredients in a mixing glass.
Dilute on ice for 15 seconds.
Pour into a cocktail glass.

Cheers!

 

If you’d like to read more about this green liqueur, take a look at the article we published for the day last year.

For other French spirits and liqueurs, take a look at our other articles:

Chartreuse Day – only 2 monks know the recipe!

Cognac Day 2021: which cognacs to drink?

Mikael Gillard speaks to us about French Spirits: Armagnac, Calvados and Cognac

Absinthe Day

World Gin Day: it’s more French than you might think

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