Chartreuse VEP Verte

A long and colorful story from 1605 when in the Carthusian monastery of Vauvert the monks received as a gift from Francois Annibal d'Estrées an old manuscript containing a "Elixir of long life".

In 1737 the monks succeeded in elaborating the definitive recipe for the famous élixir, composed of a mixture of herbs and plants macerated in 69% wine alcohol.

The monks today produce Chartreuse as yesterday. They keep their secret jealously and are the only ones who know the details of the production.

The liqueurs produced do not contain any chemical additives; the same color comes from the plants that compose them. The 130 herbs in the Chartreuse Verde recipe are left to macerate in a high-quality alcohol, and after distillates.

After this process, a honey and sugar syrup for Jaune is added.
The yellow Chartreuse is the 40% variant always made using 130 herbs but in different quantities and dosages with the Green Chartresue. The color is 100% natural thanks to the use of saffron and a mix of additional herbs and spices before the long aging in oak barrels, in the beautiful cellars in Voiron.

In 1963 a special bottling came out, the V.E.P. which is an extra aging of the two liqueurs, yellow and green, aged for more than 10 years in French oak barrels. Infusion alcohol of V.E.P. Yellow is neutral alcohol of wine while that for V.E.P. Green is beet neutral alcohol. The differences are to be discovered by tasting some old bottle.

Chartreuse continues to make history in the world, in addition to being an official pantone (between green and yellow) has become one of the cult products in the restaurant and in the art of mixology. In particular, with two cocktails designed by Gian Franco Pola: the 127, a drink based on Chartreuse Gialla, lime juice and ginger ale and the American Pola made with Chartreuse Verde, bitters, drops of élixir végétal Chartreuse and tonic water.