The Cabinet: Suze

L'amie de l'estomac

~ SUZE ~
Gentian-based aperitif liqueur / 15% ABV / c£15-25+ for 700ml
Friends with: Gin, vermouth, but then aren’t we all? But especially: bianco vermouth, Lillet, sherry, champagne. Mezcal and tequila. Strawberries. Passion fruit. Grapefruit. Orange.

I HAVE had a bottle of Suze knocking around for a while - a whole litre of the stuff, purchased in France for something like €9 - but it is only recently that I figured out what it is. It is gentian liqueur. The taste (peppery, earthy, bitter, bright) and the colour (zingy yellow) come from the roots of gentiana lupea, a lovely yellow flower that grows in the Jura mountains of France and Switzerland. Look: