Rhubarb Liqueur

Rhubarb Liqueur as Spring in a Bottle

The rhubarb liqueur from Faude Feine Brände is a tart and tangy fruit liqueur made from the heirloom variety "Holsteiner Blut," produced at the Kaiserstuhl with 20% ABV. Rosy, fruity, unfiltered – spring in a bottle, as Florian says, and a wonderful apéritif.

Rhubarb liqueur is an artisanal liqueur by master distiller Florian Faude from Bötzingen at the Kaiserstuhl. For this, he juices fully ripe rhubarb of the Holsteiner Blut variety, macerates it with alcohol, and adds only a light touch of sugar. This keeps it primarily fruity, with a good balance of sweetness and acidity and the bright freshness of spring.

Rosy, fruity, with a fine tingle

In the glass, the rhubarb liqueur glows rosy red and smells freshly of characteristic rhubarb, with a clear, tart-tangy trace that immediately brings young spring stalks to mind.

On the palate, it is fruity and refreshing, less sweet than expected, with a pleasant tingle on the tongue. Fruity, zesty, vibrant – the balance of sweetness and acidity makes it stimulating. Because Florian leaves it unfiltered, the initially pink hue changes to a brownish shade over time, completely without artificial coloring.

Botanically, rhubarb is a vegetable, but in this liqueur, it plays the fruit – tart, fresh, and spring-like. It is precisely this interplay between acidity and fine sweetness that makes the rhubarb liqueur so stimulating that the glass rarely stays full for long.

In a spritz with sparkling wine and a splash of soda

Served neat over ice, the rhubarb liqueur is a fine apéritif; in a spritz with sparkling wine, it becomes a zesty summer drink for you.

With dry sparkling wine or Prosecco and a splash of soda, it becomes a rosy rhubarb spritz. Served neat and well-chilled, it is also a beautiful way to open a meal. Poured over strawberries, vanilla ice cream, or plain yogurt, it brings spring to your plate, and in the summer, you can mix it with tonic and plenty of ice for a light long drink. If you like fruit liqueurs, try the sour cherry liqueur and the lemon liqueur as well.

Florian and the renaissance of the liqueur

With his rhubarb liqueur, Florian Faude brings a breath of fresh air to an almost forgotten category and clears away its dusty image.

"Spring in a bottle," is what Florian says about his tart and tangy liqueur made from the heirloom Holsteiner Blut variety. Liqueur was long considered a dusty drink for coffee parties – Florian's version is less sweet than expected and immensely fruity because it is made from real fruit juice.

The heirloom Holsteiner Blut variety is known for its deep red pulp and gives the liqueur its rosy color naturally. Florian sources the rhubarb from regional farms and processes the crisp stalks fresh, while the acidity is still lively.

Florian, a trained winemaker, founded his distillery in Bötzingen in 2006 and built his own facility in 2017. He bottles his liqueurs without artificial flavors or colorings at 20% ABV in 0.5-liter bottles. You can find other spirits from Faude Feine Brände here.

Give it a shake before pouring

Chilled to around 8 degrees Celsius, the rhubarb liqueur displays its acidity most clearly, whether neat or as a spritz. Give the bottle a light shake before pouring, as sediment will settle over time since it is unfiltered. In its clear liqueur bottle, it makes a lovely gift for anyone who loves spring and could never find anything to like in sticky-sweet liqueurs. Spring in a glass, all year round.