Crème Yvette: The crème de la crème of violet liqueur

In the several hundred early 20th century cocktail recipes collected by my 2x Great Uncle in his Mixing Master manuscript, at least a third include liqueurs — sweetened, flavored distilled spirits such as creme de cacao, green and yellow chartreuse, curaçao etc.

Curaçao gets the most action, with 35 of Caulkin’s recipes calling for the familiar citrus liqueur.

But coming in a close second, with 32 recipes, is a mysterious little minx called Crème Yvette. Trips to my local big box wine & spirits stores turned up zip.

One internet search later, I discovered that Crème Yvette is generally considered to be a violet liqueur, basically a proprietary version of crème de violette. Sort of like how Cointreau is considered a triple sec — though I for one don’t think the two are interchangeable; and I ended up feeling the same way about Crème Yvette vs. crème de violette once I finally got a hold of the former.

Crème Yvette was first produced in 1890. By 1900, it was owned and manufactured by Charles Jacquin et Cie, and it quickly became a staple behind the bar — as evidenced by its lively presence in the Mixing Master. Eventually of course, public tastes and preferences changed; and the company stopped producing the liqueur in 1969.

But by 2009, a rising interest in classic cocktails convinced Charles Jacquin et Cie to resume production.

Using all natural ingredients, and sticking as close to the original recipe as modern sourcing allows; the revived Crème Yvette is (though more red than purple in color — apparently due to the omission of artificial coloring) a lovely mellow mix of berries, honey, vanilla and violets.

Crème Yvette’s official web site states that it is “made with care in limited quantity”, and I can attest that it is still somewhat of a challenge to find, at least out here on the west coast. I eventually found it in NY, where it seems to be more widely available. Catch up, California!

Next post, I’ll give you a recipe using this lovely liqueur. Possibly a Purple Haze (no, Jimi Hendrix didn’t invent it), or maybe a Broadway Jones, or perhaps a Blue Moon, or even a Sunbeam. Of course we simply must do a Violet Cocktail. . .