Lillet
The French aperitif made from Bordeaux wine and citrus liqueur, famous for the Lillet Spritz and James Bond's Vesper. Everything about the taste, the three colors, and the glass it is served in.
Bordeaux wine and citrus liqueur from Podensac
Lillet is a French wine-based aperitif made in Podensac, a village south of Bordeaux. Brothers Paul and Raymond Lillet started making it there in 1872. The base is Bordeaux wine (about 85%), supplemented with liqueurs made from sweet and bitter oranges and a touch of quinine. The whole mixture matures in oak barrels.
The result is a fresh, slightly sweet 17% aperitif served chilled, neat or with tonic. Lillet Blanc is the classic; Lillet Rosé (since 2011) is the base of the popular Lillet Spritz, and Lillet Rouge is the red, slightly spicier variation. Lillet is part of Pernod Ricard and is best known in the Netherlands for the spritz with tonic and strawberry.
In brief
What types of Lillet are there?
Three colors, one recipe idea: Bordeaux wine with citrus liqueur. The difference lies in the wine and sweetness.
Lillet Blanc
The original, made from white Bordeaux (Sémillon). Honey, orange, and a fresh, slightly bitter finish.
Lillet Rosé
Made from red and white Bordeaux wines, with red fruit and grapefruit. The base of the Lillet Spritz.
Lillet Rouge
Made from red Bordeaux (Merlot). Fuller-bodied, with ripe red fruit, vanilla, and spices.
For the spritz, choose Rosé; for cocktails and drinking neat, choose Blanc.
Fresh, honey-sweet and slightly bitter from orange
Orange & honey
Candied orange, honey, white flowers and a hint of mint and lime.
Soft and fruity
Slightly sweet, juicy and fresh at the same time, with the wine clearly present and a fine, rounded structure.
Slightly bitter
A soft bitterness of orange peel and quinine that balances the sweetness. Long and fresh.
Flavor profile of Lillet Blanc. Rosé is fruitier with red fruit, Rouge fuller and spicier.
Three ways to drink Lillet
Always drink Lillet chilled: straight from the refrigerator, with plenty of ice and preferably with a piece of fruit. It is also at its best served neat at around 6 degrees.
Lillet Spritz
50 ml Lillet Rosé, 100 ml tonic and a few strawberries in a large wine glass full of ice. Fresh, fruity and at 17%, considerably lighter than an Aperol Spritz.
Glass: large wine glass →Lillet tonic
50 ml Lillet Blanc with 100 ml tonic in a wine glass with ice and a slice of cucumber or orange. The French answer to gin and tonic, but much lighter.
Glass: wine glass →Vesper Martini
60 ml gin, 20 ml vodka and 10 ml Lillet Blanc, shaken (that's how Bond likes it) and strained into a chilled martini glass with a lemon zest. The cocktail from Casino Royale.
Go to the recipe →The best cocktails with Lillet
Vesper Martini
Gin, vodka and Lillet Blanc. 'Shaken, not stirred', with a lemon zest. The most famous cocktail with Lillet.
Corpse Reviver No. 2
Gin, Cointreau, Lillet Blanc and lemon with an absinthe rinse. Fresh, complex and dangerously delicious.
Aperol Spritz
The spritz. Replace the Aperol with Lillet Rosé and the prosecco with tonic, and you have a Lillet Spritz.
Aperitif cocktails
All the light, refreshing cocktails for before dinner, from spritz to Americano.The right glass for Lillet
A large wine glass or copa for the spritz and Lillet tonic, a martini glass for the Vesper and a coupe for the classics. These are the glasses we recommend ourselves.
Everything you still wanted to know about Lillet
Is your question not listed? Check out our cocktail recipes or contact us.
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