Centerbe
Encyclopedia
Centerbe or Centerba, translated as "one hundred herbs", is a traditional Italian liqueur
of light green colour made of digestive and aromatic herbs found in the Majella
, an appendix of the Apennine Mountains
. It is made in Abruzzo
, Italy
and it contains 70% alcohol. The liqueur comes in two strengths: strong and mild. The strong centerba is considered to be beneficial for the digestion but it can also be applied externally as an antiseptic. It was originally manufactured by Benjamin Toro and Son.
It has a very high alcoholic content, usually 60 to 150 proof (30 - 75%). Homemade Centerbe can be made by placing orange leaves, basil, chamomile, rosemary, sage, juniper, cloves, cinnamon, toasted coffee beans, saffron, mint, lemon leaves, mandarin leaves, thyme blossoms, and marjoram in a bottle, pouring alcohol over the whole thing, and letting the mixture macerate, covered, for at least 30 days, then straining it through a cloth napkin and adding a sugar syrup. Aged at least one month, Centerbe is an excellent digestive drink.
'White Unsweetened Centerbe' is an ingredient in the forgotten, presumably French, Coup de Foudre ['Love Struck'] cocktail, included in the United Kingdom Bartenders Guild's '1700 Cocktails' (1934). Verbatim, the recipe is: 1/3 White Unsweetened Centerbe', 1/3 Red Curaçao, 1/3 Coates Plymouth Gin. Serve with a small piece of candied orange peel.
'Unsweetened' suggests that, at that time, a strictly medicinal version of Centerbe was available, perhaps similar to the homemade recipe above without the sugar syrup. Alternatively, many of the 18th century sweet recipes are, to modern tastes, exceptionally sweet. So perhaps standard Centerbe was routinely sweetened to make it palatable. Bols and Grand Marnier both formerly made red curacaos. Coates, then owners of Plymouth Gin, subsidised the publication of 1700, and in return became the 'named' gin brand in almost all the recipes.
Liqueur
A liqueur is an alcoholic beverage that has been flavored with fruit, herbs, nuts, spices, flowers, or cream and bottled with added sugar. Liqueurs are typically quite sweet; they are usually not aged for long but may have resting periods during their production to allow flavors to marry.The...
of light green colour made of digestive and aromatic herbs found in the Majella
Majella
The Maiella is a massif in the Central Apennines, in Abruzzo, central Italy, at the boundary between the provinces of Chieti, Pescara and L'Aquila....
, an appendix of the Apennine Mountains
Apennine mountains
The Apennines or Apennine Mountains or Greek oros but just as often used alone as a noun. The ancient Greeks and Romans typically but not always used "mountain" in the singular to mean one or a range; thus, "the Apennine mountain" refers to the entire chain and is translated "the Apennine...
. It is made in Abruzzo
Abruzzo
Abruzzo is a region in Italy, its western border lying less than due east of Rome. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and it contains 70% alcohol. The liqueur comes in two strengths: strong and mild. The strong centerba is considered to be beneficial for the digestion but it can also be applied externally as an antiseptic. It was originally manufactured by Benjamin Toro and Son.
It has a very high alcoholic content, usually 60 to 150 proof (30 - 75%). Homemade Centerbe can be made by placing orange leaves, basil, chamomile, rosemary, sage, juniper, cloves, cinnamon, toasted coffee beans, saffron, mint, lemon leaves, mandarin leaves, thyme blossoms, and marjoram in a bottle, pouring alcohol over the whole thing, and letting the mixture macerate, covered, for at least 30 days, then straining it through a cloth napkin and adding a sugar syrup. Aged at least one month, Centerbe is an excellent digestive drink.
'White Unsweetened Centerbe' is an ingredient in the forgotten, presumably French, Coup de Foudre ['Love Struck'] cocktail, included in the United Kingdom Bartenders Guild's '1700 Cocktails' (1934). Verbatim, the recipe is: 1/3 White Unsweetened Centerbe', 1/3 Red Curaçao, 1/3 Coates Plymouth Gin. Serve with a small piece of candied orange peel.
'Unsweetened' suggests that, at that time, a strictly medicinal version of Centerbe was available, perhaps similar to the homemade recipe above without the sugar syrup. Alternatively, many of the 18th century sweet recipes are, to modern tastes, exceptionally sweet. So perhaps standard Centerbe was routinely sweetened to make it palatable. Bols and Grand Marnier both formerly made red curacaos. Coates, then owners of Plymouth Gin, subsidised the publication of 1700, and in return became the 'named' gin brand in almost all the recipes.