fnarf999

Lillet is commonly available in the US; I can get it at my supermarket. I've never had the red, which is scarcer, but the yellow is very good. It is not like other vermouths at all, though it technically is one; it's sweeter and orangeyer, if that's a word. Principal added flavors are several kinds of orange, and quinine. Delicious. If people question your masculinity when you drink it, pity them.

Scarlett

Oh I love Lillet! (<i>Lee-lay)</i>
We started drinking Lillet Rouge but now I like Lillet Blanc.
In Florida we would mix it with a touch of soda..perfect and no headache

MichelleY

Suze:

i clicked on this post because I thought it was about you!!

MY

ira

Hi all,

&gt;here is the recipe for James Bond's original martini ...&lt;

Gin, vodka and Lillet makes a Martini?

Pernod, and other brands of Pastis, tastes like licorice.

enzian

Ira---it's technically a &quot;Casino Royale&quot;.

DaveBrad

I have a couple of questions about ordering &quot;festive&quot; beverages during our upcoming trip to Paris and it seems I've come to the right place! Someone mentioned pastis and I'm reading a book called &quot;A Year in Provence&quot; where they talk about drinking it quite frequently. Could someone please tell me what it is. I saw it mentioned in the same sentence as Pernod, which I think is similar to Sambuca (one of my favorites). Are they similar (sort of licorice flavored)? Also, what is &quot;marc&quot;?
And, will I be able to get my favorite Canadian whiskies (Crown Royal or Canadian Club) in Paris, or should I acclimate my palette to Irish whiskies, which I also enjoy?
And, what about biere? What are the brands of choice in Paris?
Thanks for any advice...I love a good liquor discussion!

ekscrunchy

Pastis is the name of a drink made with Pernod, Ricard, 51, or another anise-flavored brand. So pastis is the drink and Pernod and Ricard and the others are the brand names.

Marc is an eau-de-vie, or a brandy, which is distilled wine. One of the best and rarest is made from the grapes used to make the sparkling wine, Champagne, and called Marc de Champagne.

More usual is the marc from Burgundy which can be elegant as well.
Think of marc as a French variation of Italian grappa.

ekscrunchy

To answer your question more fully, pastis is made by adding water to Pernod or another anise aperitif. The drink becomes cloudy with the addition of water. It is popular in the south of France but I am not sure that it is as widely drunk in Paris. You have to like the flavor of anise.

SuzieC

I have had pastis in Paris. We now have it at home ...

marcy_

Ira,
&lt;&lt;Gin, vodka and Lillet makes a Martini?&gt;&gt;

Well, yes... Lillet is vermouth. Isn't a martini usually made with gin or vodka and vermouth?

I guess the usual martini would have either gin or vodka but not both, but still, that sounds like a martini to me.

DaveBrad

Is pastis normally served chilled? Also, and please forgive my ignorance, but should I expect ice for my drink, and if so, how do I order it? I guess &quot;on the rocks&quot; doesn't work?

robjame

Dave
Pastis can be an apperitif. Usually served room temp with room temp water and a glass with ice although I have had it served without ice.
I think that marc generally follows the meal. Kir royale (champagne and (usually) cassis (liquor) make an excellent apperitif. Kir (without the royale) is cassis and dry white wine. I have found that a lot of restaurants have their own variations on Kirs and Kir Royales which is fun to try.
IMO put away the CC and CR and other whiskeys and try to find something else to drink in France. (The fun can be in the trying to find...). Some of the great European bieres and of course wine (usually available by the glass in bars.)
biere - We usually order &quot;un presssion&quot; - draft and we stay away from the usual stuff. Although I have found even a Stella tastes different in Paris. Of course everything tastes different in Paris.

monet77

Acrtually Ricard and Pernod are brands of pastis. Henri Bardouin pastis is supposed to be the best.

robjame

As for cassis we picked up Gabriel Boudier de Dijon (the birth place of kirs) and I really like it. Different cassises can very much affect a Kir.
And of course in Kir Royales, good champagne DOES make a huge difference.

DaveBrad

Rob, thanks for all the tips...the Kir Royale sounds like it's right up my alley! And, thanks for the advice about CC and CR...you're right, I can get it anytime back here. Just curious: Is there such a thing as French whiskey? I know I like my Grey Goose French vodka!

fnarf999

Gack. That's definitely not a Martini. James Bond didn't know anything about Martinis, whatever Sean Connery says.

A Martini is London dry gin with dry white vermouth (absolutely not Lillet), mixed in proportions ranging from the original 2-to-1, 3-to-1, 5-1, 20-1, down to even Winston Churchill's apocryphal &quot;bow in the direction of France&quot;, stirred rapidly in ice, and strained into a glass with an olive or a twist of lemon. No vodka, no apple liqueur, no chocolate, no bizarre additives of any kind.

Lillet is &quot;a vermouth&quot;, which is a very broad category of spiced wines, but it is absolutely not a dry French vermouth. Try Noilly Prat in your Martini.

I believe marc is made not from grapes themselves but, like grappa, from the skins, seeds, and stems left over after the crush. Traditionally it's an unaged, nasty, lighter-fluid drink for the agricultural workers, but like grappa it has developed over time into a proper spirit that's a very interesting and yummy brandy.

fnarf999

I agree: in Paris, don't drink whisky (or whiskey either); if you want spirits drink Cognac or Armagnac.

fnarf999

I've never had a French whisky, but apparently there is such a thing. See http://www.maltmadness.com/deviant.html#France
It says there's a buckwheat whisky made in Brittany which sounds interesting. I guess it makes sense that their whisky is from the Celtic part of the country.

Shame I live in Washington State, where the government runs the liquor stores, and if it's not on their paltry list you can't have it.

The real French &quot;whisky&quot; is eau-de-vie, or brandy; &quot;whisky&quot;, &quot;eau-de-vie&quot;, and &quot;aquavit&quot; all mean the same thing in their respective languages: &quot;water of life&quot;.

cocofromdijon

&lt;Is there such a thing as French whiskey?&gt;
Dave, hubby loves Michel Couvreur's brand. The cellar is in Burgundy near Beaune. I don't appreciate whisky but the smell in the barrel was great! It can be very expensive (up to 275&euro...
http://www.michelcouvreur.com/

robjame

There are French whiskeys but I think they are though of as &quot;deviant drams&quot; or &quot;bastard malts&quot;. I know there was a flurry to produce whiskey when someone realized that the duty on French products in Japan was less than the duty on products from Scotland.
Why not save your whiskey taste buds to wrap around one of the hundreds of different French Cognacs or Armagnacs.
My favorite restaurant in Paris is Le Truffiere in the 5e arrondisement. As well as specializing in truffles (the fungal kind) he has a wonderful collection of Armagnacs which he will gladly share with you (at an appropriate &euro.