Chartreuse festivals
On the occasion of the Chartreuse Festival, an event we always delight in celebrating, we invited you to discover our chocolate shop during organized visits on Wednesday, May 14, 2025.
This year, the theme honors plants, a source of inspiration we particularly cherish in our craft. All places were claimed within just a few days, thank you for your enthusiasm!
As we await this special appointment, here is a gentle reminder of the origins of this emblematic celebration… and especially those of Chartreuse elixir, which is always fascinating to recall.
A symbolic date: 16.05
Each 16.05, Chartreuse liqueurs are celebrated in more than 20 countries worldwide. An allegorical date of the year 1605, during which the recipe (still secret to this day) of an elixir of long life composed of 130 plants (the only known element of the recipe), was transmitted to the Carthusian Monks by the Marshal d'Estrées, at the Monastery of Vauvert, in Paris.
A craftsmanship of over 400 years
Armed with their knowledge of plant use and their therapeutic virtues, the Carthusians worked on this recipe for more than a century and a half to achieve in 1764 the « Vegetable Elixir of the Grand Chartreuse ». Its recipe remains unchanged to this day.
In the years that followed, the monks reworked and refined this concoction of 130 plants to create a new « Table Elixir ». And it was in 1840 that a new liqueur was born: Green Chartreuse, followed shortly after by Yellow Chartreuse, softer and slightly sweeter.
An international event
By transforming this symbolic date of the year 1605 into 16.05, the idea of creating an annual and international event came to fruition. This allows lovers of this famous beverage, with a history as mysterious as it is captivating and a flavor beyond compare, to celebrate it with the reverence it deserves.
A "Chartreuse Friendship Pact" was signed between all municipalities that have hosted a distillery of the Carthusian Fathers throughout history, thus creating a strong bond between the towns of St Pierre de Chartreuse, St Laurent-du-Pont, Voiron, Entre-Deux-Guiers, Marseille and Tarragona (Catalonia - Spain).
This annual gathering highlights an entire region around the Carthusian Order, Chartreuse Liqueurs and its mountain range of the same name, thanks to all the activities organized in these different municipalities, combining history, conviviality and festivities.
A « ingredient » complex yet so fascinating to work with
For you, we have crafted Chartreuse in various and truly delightful variations.
Whether paired with chocolate or in confectionery, Chartreuse remains a complex ingredient to work with, with different reactions depending on its strength, temperature and the ingredient it is paired with.
This technical challenge makes for a thrilling endeavor with results of varying intensity depending on the product developed. From the lightest, in our Green Chartreuse Marshmallow, to the most intense with our Intenses with Green or Yellow Chartreuse, you will also find an intermediate strength with our chocolates or, with our Essendoles.
As you will have understood, the hardest part is choosing!
