Ambassadeur Aperitif de Tradition 1 Liter

Ambassadeur is a French aperitif first made in 1936 by Pierre Pourchet under the Cusenier name and now produced by Pernod Ricard. Its base is mistela, grape must fortified with alcohol before fermentation can take hold, which keeps the natural grape sugars and gives the wine its sweet, rounded body. That base is rested for more than a year in oak, where slow oxygen exchange softens the spirit and adds a faint nutty depth before any flavouring goes in. The settled mistela is then macerated with orange peel, curaçao, vanilla, cocoa beans and a wide mix of herbs, seeds and roots, with gentian supplying the measured bitterness that marks the style. At 16 percent it sits in classic aperitif territory. The colour is deep amber. The nose is complex and faintly reminiscent of sangria, with bitter orange leading over vanilla and dried herbs. The palate restates the orange against sweet spice and cocoa, closing on the dry, gently bitter gentian finish that makes it an appetite sharpener rather than a dessert pour. Serve chilled over ice with a slice of orange, before a meal or alongside salted almonds and hard cheese.