Becherovka
Becherovka (formerly Karlsbader Becher-Bitter ) is a greenish-yellow herbal bitter schnapps from Karlsbad ( Czech Karlovy Vary ) in Bohemia , which is produced exclusively by the Jan Becher company.
The classic Becherovka contains 38% vol. Alcohol, other variations are also sold. The herbal liqueur is drunk either pure, ice-cold or as a mixed drink. In addition to long drinks with tonic, cola and kofola, there are other recipes, for example with lemon.
history
The liqueur was first produced by the pharmacist Josef Vitus Becher in Karlsbad , based on a recipe made from herbs and spices from the British colonies and alcohol, which had been kept secret for years , and was further produced by his son Johann Becher (1815–1896). This bitters, initially called “English bitter”, became a sales success as “Karlsbader Becherbitter” in Austria-Hungary in the course of the 19th century and has since been copied with accompanying disputes about the correct recipe, especially the necessary spices. After the First World War and the establishment of Czechoslovakia , the name "Karlsbader Becherbitter" was called Becherovka in the Czech language and ironically referred to as the thirteenth of the twelve existing medicinal springs in the spa town of Karlovy Vary. By the First World War, the Karlsbader Becherbitter had received numerous prizes and the Grand Prix at the Paris World Exhibition in 1900 .
After the Second World War and the expropriation of the Sudeten German owner family Becher in 1946 by the Beneš decrees , production was cut back sharply. Under the direction of Václav Lupínek, Becherovka has become one of the most famous liqueur brands in the country since the 1960s. In 1993 the state enterprise was privatized.
From 1998 to 2001 there was a copycat product from Becherovka in Slovakia ; Its producer Zdeněk Hoffmann made it according to a recipe allegedly given to his grandfather by Alfred Becher, a member of the Becher family, in 1939. In 2007 he was forced to stop production by the Domažlice District Court .
Manufacturing
Becherovka is made from herbs , oils and alcohol . The ingredients are put together in the Drogikamr in the factory in Karlovy Vary (Carlsbad) according to a secret recipe. The herbal mixture is filled into cloth bags and immersed in a tank of alcohol for about a week. Then the extract is mixed with water and sugar and poured into oak barrels. The Becherovka matures there for two months. Then the herbal liqueur is filled into the typical green, flattened bottles. These have sizes from 5 cl to 4.5 l.
Mixed drinks
The best-known mixed drink with Becherovka in the Czech Republic is the so-called concrete , consisting of Be cherovka and clay ic water . In addition, Becherovka is also offered with Cola and Top Topic, a grape lemonade produced by the Kofola company in the Czech Republic .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Johann Becher, Karlsbad. In: Anniversary number of the imperial Wiener Zeitung 1703-1903. Supplement commercial part. Alfred von Lindheim. Druck und Verlag KK Hof- und Staatsdruckerei, Vienna, August 8, 1903, p. 41 , accessed on April 30, 2009 (German).
- ↑ Peter Martos: herbal liqueur Becherovka: Rise instead of liquidation. Die Presse , August 20, 2003, accessed on May 9, 2009 (German, After a checkered history, the legendary herbal liqueur from Karlsbad is now part of Europe's largest beverage company, Pernod Ricard.).
