A bottle of Grande Absente 69 absinthe looks modest but impressive: the recipe for this drink is over a hundred years old, and it does not need better advertising. Even the content of thujone (35 mg per liter) and strength (69%) are not hidden somewhere in the corner of the label, but are indicated by large numbers in the red triangle. The word grande means “great” in French. Connoisseurs say that “Grand Absinthe 69” is the standard of absinthe.
“Grand Absinthe 69” does not contain artificial colors and preservatives. For its manufacture, herbs grown in the Alpine highlands are used. The color of the drink is light green, the aroma is anise-wormwood, with a mint tint. In the taste of absinthe, the burning bitterness of wormwood is replaced by a warm spicy aftertaste.
Historical reference. Haute Provence is an area in the foothills of the Alps, which has long been famous for its abundance of fragrant herbs and flowers. In the fertile valley of the Durance River, under the hot southern sun, abundant harvests of fruits and vegetables ripen. Here, from time immemorial, not only wine was made, but also stronger drinks.
This craft flourished especially at the end of the XNUMXth century, when absinthe came into fashion in France. Almost every village in Upper Provence had its own distillery, where fruit alcohol was distilled, which was then infused with wormwood and other mountain herbs.
In 1898, in the vicinity of the city of Forcalquier, under Mount Lure, a new distillery was built – Distillerie de Lure. The small distillery produced excellent absinthe and flourished, but in 1915 the French government banned the manufacture and sale of this drink.
By that time, attacks by opponents of wormwood tincture on the warehouses of distilleries became more frequent. The Distillerie de Lure also suffered. At the end of 1914, armed men attacked the train with absinthe, broke all the bottles, and burned the wagons. Despite the losses, Distillerie de Lure, unlike most small rural distilleries, did not close, but switched to the production of other tinctures and liqueurs.
In 1944, Marcel Pascal, one of the owners of the distillery, was shot by the Gestapo for participating in the Resistance. In 1946, Henri Bardon acquired part of the shares of the declining enterprise. He completely re-equipped the plant, investing in the modernization of all his funds. Only in 1950 was the first profit made. Monsieur Bardon was well versed in herbs. It was he who created the liqueur recipes that made Distillerie de Lure famous.
In 1974, Henri Bardon retired and handed over the company to his son Jacques, who greatly expanded production. Since 1978, Alain Robert, a friend and companion of Jacques Bardon, has become the general director of the plant.
In 1987, a controlling stake in the company became the property of the Pernod-Ricard concern. But already in 1990, Monsieur Robert bought the plant and gave it a new name – Distilleries et Domaines de Provence.
Today the company employs about 30 people. Alain Robert personally controls the quality of products. In 1999, when the ban on making absinthe was lifted, Monsieur Robert adapted the old recipe for wormwood tincture in such a way that, despite automation, all the best features inherent in this drink were retained in the new absinthe.