Frangelico Liqueur

Today we look at another classic liqueur, Frangelico. Similar to my last review on Southern Comfort, this is one of those liqueurs you see all the time but maybe have not tried. Sad though, since Frangelico has been around 300 years you should have had plenty of time to try it!

Like Chartreuse, Benedictine and others, Frangelico's origin also involves monks which usually ends up with deliciousness.

Background:

Frangelico is a Noisette and herb flavored liqueur. You might be unfamiliar with Noisette and that is because it is french for "Hazelnut" or "made from Hazelnut".

This ancient liqueur is produced in the Piedmont region of Italy, with origins dating as far back as 300 years. It is believed to have originated with Christian monks living in the area of that time. The name itself coming from one of those same monks, "Fra. Angelico" who resided in the hills of the Piedmont area.

The Frangelico web site has great information on the history and production process. Flavors imparted in this liqueur are set in throughout the production process during distillation and infusion. According to the site, they use local hazelnuts and concentrate the flavor by making a hazelnut distillate and blending this with further hazelnut infusion. All along the way they use various floral and herbal ingredients to add spice and round out the flavor.

Visual:

After being impressed by the unique bottle I expected more of the liquid itself. It's not that its bad looking, it is just a very light color. It has a very light amber-caramel color and when put up to the light it becomes almost a golden liquid.

The bottle on the other hand is awesome. It is designed to have the appearance of a monk wearing his habit, even down to the rope belt. An interesting bit of trivia on the net is that the monk resemblance would seem to represent a Franciscan friar, but Fra Angelico was likely a Dominican friar whom wore different robes. However after reading a description of the Dominican friar's habits, I think that the Franciscan look brings more to mind a "monk". Probably due to many movies having christian monks portrayed in a Franciscan style. Though I also think of the bright-orange wearing Shaolin monks from watching too many kung-fu movies.

Nose:

Ah, do I even need to mention sweet? It is a liqueur after all. When you take a whiff you will first get intense hazelnut then cinnamon and vanilla roll along. All of it is accompanied by not too sweet overtones. A hint of peanut butter is hiding in there somewhere. This could be one of my favorite smelling liqueurs so far.

Taste:

The taste and mouth feel are strange with this one. The taste is buttery in flavor, but not in feel. The feel is almost like water, very light and not very syrupy. It has hints of chocolate, spice, almonds, hazelnuts.

A good thing about the non-syrupy consistency is that the flavor does not stay too long. It is rich up front, but finishes maybe a bit too quick. The flavor does not hang around, but then this is great because it makes easier to drink more!

You definitely want to inhale while drinking this one. The aroma is a big part of the taste. Many liqueurs smell sweet and have a syrupy feel. I'm glad to find this one is different.

Final:

Overall I am very pleased with the Frangelico liqueur. I had no idea what to expect going in and then I was blown away by the taste. Especially the strange non-syrupy finish that I am so used too with other liqueurs.

This would be great for sipping on any time of the day or adding into your coffee and hot chocolate. I'm interested to try it in many cocktails including a recommendation I saw on a forum which was to halve it with fresh squeezed lime juice on ice.

Let me know if you find any cocktails with Frangelico you particularly like and I'll try them out.

Stellina Jaune

You have no doubt heard of Chartreuse Liqueur or various other alcoholic beverages created by, or watched over by Monks. Enter Stellina, a newer herbal liqueur which is supposed to be similar to Chartreuse. They have the same claims of health benefits and are both made by Monks in France. Stellina also comes in green and yellow like Chartreuse.

Stellina is made by the freres de la Sainte Famille in Belley, France. Not far away from the distillery that produces Chartreuse.

As far as I can tell, this Liqueur is not available yet in the USA. According to "The Japan Times", there will be a launch in Japan next month. Too bad I don't have any friends over there. I am really interested to try a new herbal liqueur.

The Stellina is double-distilled as opposed to Chartreuse being single-distilled. Which could make for a smoother more mellow experience.

Check out "The Japan Times Online" for an interview with Brother Teodoro. He is apparently the only living man who knows the recipe.