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Herbsaint Liqueur is an anise-flavoured American-made version of pastis.
It is made in New Orleans.
It is a clear greenish-amber colour that you can see through, though it turns cloudy in water. It is not as sweet as Pernod.
It is made by the Sazerac company. The company officially refers to it as "Liqueur d’Anis."
The recipe is secret.
Herbsaint Liqueur is used in making Oysters Rockefeller, and in making the cocktail called "Sazerac."
45% alcohol.
Substitutes
Pernod, Ricard
History
Herbsaint Liqueur is produced by Legendre Distilleries. Since 1 January 1948, the J.M. Legendre & Company has been owned by "The Sazerac Company." Before 1948, the label said that the bottler was Legendre & Company. From 1948 to autumn 1956, the label said that the bottler was Sazerac Co. Inc. After that, the label said that the bottler was Legendre Company. The label was changed in 1958, and in 1961. Since 1961 there have been several small tweakings of the label up to the current date (2006.)
The early history of Absinthe is as murky as the liqueur is when it hits water. This is quite odd, because for most things coming out of New Orleans, there are so many legends and versions of histories that you get to close your eyes and pick one.
We do know for certain that Herbsaint was created by J. M. Legendre. He was possibly a pharmacist. The M possibly stood for "Marion"; the "J" may have stood for "John" or "Joseph". His actual name may have been "Marion Joseph Legendre."
From this point, different histories emerge.
Version 1: Herbsaint was first made in the 1850s, and called "Legendre Absinthe." Absinthe proper was banned in America in 1912, because it contained wormwood, which contained a dangerous compound called "thujone" in it. "Legendre Absinthe" was reformulated in 1912 without the wormwood, and renamed "Herbsaint." It was not made during prohibition. It was relaunched in 1933 or 1934,
Version 2: When "Legendre Absinthe" was banned in 1912, they just packed it in. They relaunched the product in 1933 or 1934, and the name "Herbsaint" was used at that time.
Version 3: Herbsaint was previously made, whatever the dates, but it never contained wormwood at all and so was not true absinthe.
Version 4: Legendre (whatever his first names were) had been stationed in France during World War I, and learned how to make absinthe there. He first made Herbsaint in 1933 or 1934 with no wormwood. There was no previous version. He tried calling it "Legendre Absinthe" but found that even the name was illegal, so he quickly changed the name to "Herbsaint."
Backing for Herbsaint Liqueur being made prior to the 1930s is an extract from a 1944 booklet the company released, which says that the recipe for Herbsaint "has been a long-guarded treasure of the Legendre family, a prized possession handed down from father to son. During all the years, the Legendres pride themselves on the fact that they have never deviated from the original formula of their forebears."
Had there been a version that originated with "forebears", and if it had contained wormwood, then saying that they have never deviated from the recipe would have been an untruth.
In 1944, Herbsaint advertised itself as "100 proof" (aka 50% alcohol).
By 1958, the company was making a 90 proof (aka 45% alcohol) version; the 50% version was dropped in the 1970s.
At some point, they also made a "120 proof" (aka 60% alcohol) version. It was made in mini-bottles, at least (perhaps also in large ones, but some collectors still have the mini-ones), and was mentioned in 1951 booklet they produced.
Language Notes
Herbsaint is almost an anagram for the word "absinthe". The only letter missing is the "r". Herbsaint is also very very close to how a French speaker might pronounce "absinthe".
Acknowlegements
Legendre Herbsaint (24 page Booklet). New Orleans: Lousiana. Legendre & Co. 1944.
Other entries for Liqueurs
Absinthe, Advocaat, Alchermes, Anesone, Anisette, Arrack, Cassis, Cédratine, Chartreuse, Cherry Liqueurs, Chocolate Liqueurs, Crème de Mûre, Crème de Noyau, Crème de Pêche, Falernum, French Liqueurs, Herbsaint Liqueur, Licor Cuarenta y Tres, Limoncello, Nocino, Orange Liqueurs, Patxaran, Pear Liqueurs, Ratafia, Rosolio, Strega, Umeshu, Vin de Noix
Other entries for Alcohol
Apéritifs, Arag, Beer, Bitters, Cider, Cocktails, Finings, Mead, Measuring Alcohol Content, Pulque, Spirits, Wine
Other entries for Beverages
Atholl Brose, Atole, Carbonated Beverages, Caudle, Coffee, Egg Nog, Holiday Nog, Horchata de Arroz, Horchata de Chufas, Horchatas, Horlicks, Juice, Kvass, Milk Shakes, Pennywort Drink, Postum, Soft Drinks, Tea, Water
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