Benedictine D.O.M. Review

Prominently featured in a wide range of classic cocktails from the Vieux Carré to the Singapore Sling, Benedictine is steeped in history, having been first created over 500 years ago. A preeminent example of the herbal liqueur category, its recipe remains a closely guarded secret, but our tasting panel agrees that this standout bottling tastes as good served neat or on the rocks as it does in mixed drinks.

Tasting Notes

Color: Pale, golden, clear

Nose: Baking spices (like cardamom, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves), honey, green walnut, orange oils, tellicherry peppercorns with citrus peel aromas, fresh white flowers and blossoms

Palate: Honey, stewed fruits and spices, vanilla, herbs

Finish: Long and rich, with notes of herbs, pine, chocolate, coffee, black peppercorns, and honey

Similar bottles: Strega, Chartreuse, Galliano, Licor 43

Suggested uses: Vieux Carré, Singapore Sling, Benedictine and Brandy, served neat in a snifter or on the rocks, highball with a lemon twist

Our Review

If you’re a classic cocktail enthusiast, chances are you’ve tried Benedictine. The French liqueur lends its herbal complexity and rich honeyed notes to a range of drinks, from the Vieux Carré to the Singapore Sling.

While the exact 27 ingredients in Benedictine are a closely held secret, they lend the liqueur plenty of herbal complexity. Our reviewers discerned notes of honey, cardamom, nutmeg, vanilla, citrusy black peppercorns, and white flowers.

“It’s beautifully complex, with a big, full, rich mid-palate sweetness,” says Jeffrey Morgenthaler. “It’s impossible to pick out one single flavor, since this is a blend of dozens of spices and herbs.”

Our tasting panel unanimously loved the long, rich finish. “It’s not cloying on the finish like many sweet liqueurs,” says Julie Reiner. “It is clearly a very high-quality brandy base.” Jacques Bezuidenhout adds that the finish has a bright zing from the alcohol.

All our reviewers noted that Benedictine is a mixable, versatile liqueur that works well in classic cocktails, but also observed that it remains excellent served neat in a snifter, or on the rocks. “The alcohol content and price are not nearly as terrifying as Green Chartreuse, and yet provide quite a similar experience,” says Morgenthaler.

According to Reiner, those who enjoy high-quality ports, sherries, or vermouths over ice are likely to enjoy Benedictine. Calling herself a “big fan,” she also recommends it in a highball with soda or tonic water, and a lemon slice or twist.

“Adding a teaspoon to an Old Fashioned will add spice and pair well with whiskey, scotch, and aged rum,” says Reiner.

If you only plan to use Benedictine for cocktails, Reiner recommends buying a 350-milliliter bottle, as most recipes call for only a small amount. But our reviewers emphasized the liqueur’s ability to stand, and be sipped, on its own.

“In the pantheon of herbal liqueurs, particularly European herbal liqueurs, Benedictine is right around the top for me,” says Morgenthaler. “It sits alongside the Chartreuse family as one of the all-time greats.”

Production

There are only three copies of Benedictine D.O.M.’s secret 27-ingredient recipe in existence, and although the Le Grand family has revealed saffron and angelica to be two of them, the remaining 25 ingredients are closely guarded. Commonly assumed botanicals include hyssop, lemon balm, myrhh, juniper, aloe, arnica, and cinnamon, though these remain impossible to verify.

Today, four separate batches of the herbs and spices are distilled in copper pot stills dating back to Le Grand’s time at the Palais Bénédictine, then aged in oak barrels for eight months and blended with honey and saffron. The new blend is heated, then rests for four months in an oak tank before filtering and bottling. The resulting liquid is encased in a bottle that features the coat of arms of the Benedictine Abbey and the motto DOM: Deo Optimo Maximo, or God infinitely good, infinitely great. It is also a nod to Dominus (Master), the name given to Benedictine abbots.

History

Benedictine predates many of the famous cocktails it’s a component of by centuries, although it was nearly lost to history. In 1510, the Benedictine monk Dom Bernardo Vincelli developed the liqueur as a health elixir at the Abbey of Fécamp in Normandy, France. The recipe disappeared during the French Revolution, but in 1863, wine trader Alexandre Le Grand was said to have found it in his library and set out to recreate Vincelli’s elixir—with a few tweaks.

Benedictine was first imported to the U.S. in 1888, and in 1905, Le Grand oversaw the construction of the Palais Bénédictine, a feat of Gothic and Renaissance architecture in Fécamp where the spirit is still distilled today.

—Written and edited by Audrey Morgan