Basque Mojito
Ingredients
- 2,5 cl Izarra Verte Liqueur
- 2 cl VEDRENNE cane sugar syrup
- 6 to 8 mint leaves
- 1 half a lime
- A little sparkling water
- 10 ice cubes
Preparation
- Place the mint in the glass without crushing it.
- Add the lime wedges with the sugar, then fill with crushed ice.
- Pour in the Izarra and top up with sparkling water.
- Mix.
Production
IZARRA Vert is made from a distillate of several plants and spices, and a double maceration of walnut husks and prunes.
After distillation in a copper still, Armagnac from Clés des Ducs, the brand’s long-standing supplier, is added to the distillates.
During the first distillation, only the heart of the distillate is kept. The heads and tails are fed back into the still for redistillation. The heart of this second distillation is blended with two macerations of walnut husks and Agen prunes to create the distillate.
IZARRA Jaune is made by distilling several plants and spices. Its final blend includes honey, added after the various macerations in alcohol and Armagnac.
In 2023, IZARRA partnered with Jacques SALLES, a local beekeeper for more than 30 years, to add Basque Country acacia honey to its recipe.
History
Created in 1906 in Hendaye through the ingenuity of botanist and pharmacist Joseph Grattau, it took off after moving to Bayonne on the eve of World War I. It developed a Basque identity early on (IZARRA means “star” in Basque), becoming a symbol of the Basque Country as well as the crown jewel of French liqueurs.
Wherever the Basque people traveled, IZARRA went with them. At its peak, IZARRA had established production facilities in Latin America and Spain. In the last century, IZARRA welcomed all manner of illustrious visitors to the Basque Country, from Hemingway to Edward VII, as well as Nikita Khrushchev and Cocteau.
IZARRA was bought from the Gratteau family by Cointreau (now Rémy Cointreau) in 1981. Since 2015, the brand has been revived in the Basque Country thanks to the popularity of mixology—IZARRA, the world of Basque cocktails.
In 2018, distribution of the IZARRA brand was entrusted to the VEDRENNE group, and its distillation in Nouvelle-Aquitaine brings it closer to its roots.
Izarra, an icon of the Basque Country
With its distinctive shape and beautiful curves, Izarra’s rounded bottle became iconic, designed to make its name memorable. It also bears the coat of arms and motto of the city of Bayonne, “Nunquam Polluta” (“never defiled”).
This liqueur became the Basque Country’s symbolic gift to all the celebrities who passed through. After a legendary victory in a Basque pelota match, Chiquito de Cambo gave His Majesty King Edward VII of England his chistera and a bottle of Izarra.
In the 1950, Monsieur Grattau commissioned Paul Colin, the most talented and famous poster artist of the time, to design a poster that became famous, depicting a Basque dancer leaping in front of a bottle of Izarra Jaune.
A second poster illustrated by Zulla also helped make Izarra famous. It depicts a gold-colored “picador” aiming his lance at the yellow bottle, mounted on a green horse rearing up in front of an Izarra bottle.
Advertising evolved rapidly, and Izarra readily diversified its promotional materials. After the posters, promotional items soon found their way into cafés, hotels, and restaurants. The imagery drew on sports and dance from the Basque Country, with strong popular appeal. Miniature chisteras, statuettes of dancers or pelota players, as well as ashtrays, Mus card games, pitchers, and even a vinyl record by Luis Mariano all featured the brand’s colors.
From 1950 to 1970, Izarra honored its historic slogan, “the sun and snow of the Pyrenees,” by organizing a competition that attracted the best French skiers each year.
Since the 2015, Izarra has been part of the world of Basque cocktails, with original recipes such as the Mojito Basque, Txé, Iza Gorria, and Tik’Izarra.
