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Another favorite combination of gin and chartreuse in this egg white cocktail!
We recently rediscovered our bottle of Chartreuse after having a drink on a recent date night that prominently featured it. After having just one sip, the bottle we had somehow misplaced into the back of our liquor cabinet popped into our head after tasting the very distinctive flavor and we have been a little obsessed with making egg white cocktails that feature Chartreuse again!
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Gin and Chartreuse
Our obsession lead to us coming up with today’s egg white cocktail, The Monk’s Muse.
Pin it HERE!
Who Makes Green Chartreuse?
Chartreuse is one of those very unique liquors that hasn’t really changed since its original recipe was created way back in 1737. Distilled by Carthusian Monks from a handwritten manuscript from that gives a list of 130 herbs, plants and botanicals. Named for the Monk’s Grand Chartreuse monastery in France, the recipe is a closely guarded secret that only two monks at time know.
Jigger / Wooden Spoon / Shaker
The two monks carefully dry and blend the herbs into a mix that is then macerated in alcohol to extract the flavors. The macerated mix is then transferred to stills where the alcohols and plant oils are carefully extracted into a rich herbal liqueur. Chartreuse has a very distinctive green color, which comes from a final exposure to an herb blend before getting put into oak barrels to age.
What Ingredients are Needed for the Monk’s Muse Cocktail?
- Egg White
- Honey Chamomile Bitters
- Honey Simple Syrup
- Pear Nectar
- Vermouth Blanc
- Chartreuse
- Gin
All this work results in a sweet, richly aromatic and boldly herbal liqueur. It lends itself to sipping straight or mixing into cocktails to add a real layer of complexity. Chartreuse works really well with gin as both spirits have an herbal component. But likewise the Chartreuse has a sweet spiciness to it, gins bring a bright citrus quality. With the two spirits making a great foundation, we next built upon that combination. We layered in some components to add some balance to the drink.
Fine Mesh Strainer / Hawthorne Strainer / Bitters
We decided to stick with spirits from France, choosing to use La Quintinye Vermouth Royal Blanc. It’s a French vermouth made by blending fine white wines and Pineau des Charentes (a French aperitif fortified wine) from the Cognac region of France. The vermouth has a beautiful aromatic perfume and hints of grapefruit, herbs and hay and a woody note. This gives a warm sweetness that pairs up with the gin and the aged oaky notes of the Chartreuse.
For our sour component, we go with gin’s classic partner in crime, lemon. The lemon adds a refreshing sourness to the drink and bringing out the citrus notes in the gin. Of course once you add a little sour, you need some sweet, so what better way to celebrate all the wonderful plants used in the Chartreuse then to use honey. Honey of course is made from the nectar from all those plants! The honey adds a nice sweetness and warmth and a nice aromatic floral scent.
What French Flavors to Use?
We used lots of French influences to make the Monk’s Muse, and with that in mind, we decided that any good French dish (or drink in this case) has to have an elegant richness to it. To add that richness, we turned to pear nectar and egg white. The homemade pear nectar adds a smooth fruitiness and body to the cocktail. The egg white is a classic way to add a richness to an egg white cocktail when shaken in. Plus it adds a rich foam and creamy texture that smooths out the rough edges of the spirits.
If You Are Looking for More Egg White Cocktails, Try These!
- Rhubarb Sour
- T & T Sour
- Pisco Sour
- Holiday Ginger Flip
- Root Beer Whiskey Flip
- Aronia Sour
- Blood Orange Gin Sour
- Clover Club
- Raspberry Peach Ramos Gin Fizz
Elegant and refined, a delicious combination of herbs, fruit and citrus, the Monk’s Muse deserves a spot on your table!
How else can you drink Green Chartreuse?
Well, Queen Elizabeth apparently drinks it with bubbly and a splash of maraschino liqueur. So be like the Queen!
Cheers!
Like this recipe? Try these below, too!
Other Chartreuse Cocktails
- Verdant Lady – Bojon Gourmet
- Chartreuse Swizzle – Difford’s Guide
- Whisky-Chartreuse Cocktail – Tasting Table
- Cucumber, Gin and Chartreuse Cocktail – Sevengrams
- The Widow’s Kiss – Garden Cocktails
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Monk's Muse - A GIn and Chartreuse Cocktail
A classic cocktail combination of gin, vermouth and chartreuse, with some other surprise flavors.
Ingredients
- 1.50 oz gin
- .25 oz Chartreuse
- 1 oz Vermouth Blanc
- .75 oz pear nectar
- .50 oz honey simple syrup
- .25 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3 drops honey chamomile bitters
- 1 egg white
Instructions
Pour all the spirits, syrup, nectar and lemon juice into a shaker.
Add the egg white.
Dry shake (no ice) to emulsify the egg.
Add ice to shaker.
Shake until chilled.
Double strain into a chilled coupe.
Garnish with 3 drops of honey chamomile bitters.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
1Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 222 Total Fat: 0.2g Saturated Fat: 0.1g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 0g Cholesterol: 0mg Sodium: 38mg Carbohydrates: 16.2g Fiber: 0.2g Sugar: 13.4g Protein: 3.7g
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Oooo I gotta try this!
Thank you for all of the interesting background info too… sometimes it’s nice to understand a bit about what w are making/cooking/baking/drinking.
Thanks! We love the history of liquor, and to learn about how things are made! Cheers!
I’ve never really used Chartreuse before. Thank you for the tasting notes! This drink looks delicious!
It’s a very herbal flavor, but adds so much depth to cocktails! Cheers!
I feel like I’ve left this comment before, but suffice to say, there is a story — it’s lore, really, of how my paternal grandparents had dinner with my maternal grandparents. Chartreuse was consumed and one or two members of the dinner party ended up in the swimming pool. Drink with caution.
Haha, you did, and you made me laugh again! So funny, and I love the story!
I’ve never heard of Chartreuse before, but it sounds impressive. You’ve included a ton of details. I would love to give this a try sometime. It sounds delicious.
Thanks, it is such an interesting ingredient! We love experimenting with it, hope you try it out!
That drink sounds delicious. I have never heard of Chartreuse before. I will have to try it,
Thanks, just know it’s super herbal, enjoy!
These flavors sound so good together… the honey, Chartreuse, lemon, honey, pear… I bet this is DELICIOUS!
Thanks, we love this combo!
I can only imagine how many delicious bottles you misplace in the vast bar you have! I love it when we find things we forgot about and it translates into something as yummy as this! And ps… I just love the name of this drink! Cheers!
Ha, year every so often we find a bottle and go, uh, we need to use this! Thanks much, Michele! Cheers to you!
Beautiful pictures, and a delicious looking drinks too !!! This I must make !!!
Thanks so much! Enjoy!
I could use one of these cocktails. ‘Tis Friday and all. 🙂
Absolutely! Thank goodness for the weekend!
I am really excited to try this cocktail! Until recently, I wasn’t a fan of gin, but now I am learning to appreciate its unique botanical taste. This cocktail looks incredibly complex in flavors. Yum! Plus – I love its title. Perfect!
It’s such a great liquor. Honestly if you had told me 3 years ago that I would like gin this much, I would have laughed at you, so I totally get it! Thanks, and cheers!
Somehow we don’t have any chartreuse in our very well stocked liquor cabinet! That’s such a cool story- I’m going to look for it on my next liquor store run!!!
Haha, you need some! Just know it’s super expensive!
Oh, I am totally loving this! We were just talking about how we needed to find a new drink to use some of our gin (somehow we have two almost full bottles?!) I think we will make this!
Chartreuse! A liquor so good, they named a color after it! Also I love your stemware!
I know right?! Those monks knew what they were doing! We got that glass at a thrift store. There was only one, we were sad.
Oh yum, this totally sounds like my kind of cocktail!! Love the flavors going on here!! Only 3 more weeks (hopefully) until I have this baby and then I can indulge a little bit again 🙂
I haven’t had chartreuse in ages, and looking at this recipe, I feel like that needs to change! I love the sound of the pear nectar, honey, and honey-chamomile bitters with it. What a fragrant and elegant cocktail!
A cocktail with lemon, honey, and pear nectar? I am so in! This sounds heavenly for a date night. I’ve got to try this!
I love all these complex flavors, sounds like a great combination of ingredients – sweet & slightly sour! I have never had a cocktail with an egg white before – love all the creativity you have here!!
Your drink recipes always make me want to go straight to the liquor store! They are so pretty and seem so swanky!
Where are the glasses from? Such beautiful stemware!
Thanks so much! Wish I could tell you, but we found it at a Goodwill a few years back. No markings on it or anything. Cheers!