Lillet

Lillet (French pronunciation: [li'le]), classed as an aromatised wine within EU law, is a French wine-based aperitif from Podensac. It is a blend of 85% Bordeaux region wines (Semillon for the Blanc and for the Rosé, Merlot for the Rouge) and 15% macerated liqueurs, mostly citrus liqueurs (peels of sweet oranges from Spain and Morocco and peels of bitter green oranges from Haiti). The mix is then stirred in oak vats until blended. During the aging process, Lillet is handled as a Bordeaux wine (undergoing fining, racking, filtering etc.).

In the original Kina Lillet formulation (so named with respect to its status as a quinquina), quinine liqueur made of cinchona bark from Peru was included among its ingredients. Its manufacturers removed the quinine-containing cinchona bark from their recipe in 1985, drastically altering what was the core bitter element in an effort to keep pace with changing preferences. It seems that the above has changed; quoting the back label of the bottle, "Each bottle contains only the finest, carefully-selected wines, which are blended with macerated fruits and QUINQUINA, all from a secret award-winning recipe that has been passed down through generations." This contradicts the previous statement. "Lillet" belongs to a family of aperitifs known as tonic wines because of the addition of quinine liqueur.

In 1872, the brothers Paul and Raymond Lillet, distillers and merchants of wines and spirits, founded their company La Maison Lillet in Podensac, south of Bordeaux, France. The idea of making aperitifs in Bordeaux came from Father Kermann, a doctor who left Brazil at the beginning of Louis XVI's reign. Back in France, he settled in Bordeaux, where he produced liqueurs and fortifiers from plants such as quinine. During that time, Bordeaux became one of the most important places for the European wine business. It was also France's main harbour for products imported from the Caribbean Islands.

At the end of the 19th century, people developed a great fear of illness as a consequence of the discoveries made by Louis Pasteur (1822-1895). Nevertheless, "Wine", Pasteur said, "can be considered with good reason as the most healthful and the most hygienic of all beverages". As a result, tonic wines (with Quinine) became very popular as Quinine was used to fight fevers and ease Malaria symptoms. In this context, the Lillet brothers decided to conquer the expanding market of "Tonic Wines". They soon realized that the only way to make the difference was the creation of a new distinctive brand.

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