Montreal opened our eyes with a big French Kiss – a cocktail made with Pernod, orange juice and dash of grenadine. It’s a little sweet, slightly tart and resonates with that sophisticated black licorice flavour – Pernod’s signature contribution.

The licorice- and anise-flavoured booze in our liquor cabinets today is a result of a slow evolution. As far back as Biblical times, extractions were being made from licorice root and white or star anise. Largely touted as cure-alls, these remedies were prescribed to treat a wide range of ailments from upset stomachs to infertility. Today, modern medicine has supplanted most of these benefits, but even so, as recently as 2005, extracts from star anise were still being used to produce wonder-drugs like Tamiflu. Hey – we drink to that!

There's no shortage of licorice-flavoured booze in the world, but here in North America this love-it-or-hate-it flavour has never really caught on the way it has in Europe. Companies like Pernod-Ricard in France have made their products part of the national identity – Pernod is stocked in every French embassy worldwide and Ricard is synonymous as the “pastis from Marseille.” The Greeks and Italians can’t be forgotten either; ouzo and sambuca are as much a part of their national identities as olives and soccer.

North America may not have the rich tradition of producing licorice-based booze, but we’re certainly proficient at enjoying the benefits of another country’s hard work! So to help you discover the new black, we’ve assembled a quick reference guide below for the most prominent tipples and tinctures.

Pernod
Produced in France and inspired by absinthe, Pernod has a complex multilayered flavour. It is distinctly savoury and can be consumed straight with a 1:5 ratio of Pernod to water. It is frequently paired with fish or used as an ingredient in cooking. The drink has been a long-standing favourite of French artists, who over the years have been commissioned to produce some of Pernod’s historic advertisements.

Pernod, S.E.G.M. Pernod International, France 750 mL, $27
Pale yellow (turns cloudy/milky white with water), light-bodied with a slight citrus nose that underscores the deep anise flavour. Savoury, with a long finish.

Page 1 of 2