Picon is a caramel-coloured, flavoured

bitters A bitters (plural also ''bitters'') is traditionally an Alcoholic drink, alcoholic preparation flavored with botanical matter for a Bitterness (taste), bitter or bittersweet Flavoring, flavor. Originally, numerous longstanding brands of bitters ...

drunk as an apéritif, which traditionally accompanies beer in the east and north of France. It is made from a base of fresh oranges which are dried and mixed with a solution of alcohol which is distilled. Picon also contains

gentian ''Gentiana'' () is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the gentian family ( Gentianaceae), the tribe Gentianeae, and the monophyletic subtribe Gentianinae. With over 300 species, it is considered a large genus. Gentians are notable for thei ...

and

Cinchona ''Cinchona'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae containing at least 23 species of trees and shrubs. All are native to the Tropical Andes, tropical Andean forests of western South America. A few species are ...

in equal measures. Sugar, syrup and caramel are added last.

Origins

Gaétan Picon, born in 1809, was a scholar who had an apprenticeship at the

distilleries Distillation, also classical distillation, is the process of separating the component substances of a liquid mixture of two or more chemically discrete substances; the separation process is realized by way of the selective boiling of the mixt ...

of Aix-en-Provence, Toulon and Marseille. In 1837, after taking a trip to Algeria where he had been in the French Army, he invented Picon. The aperitif was placed in the category of ''bitters'' and was 39%

alcohol by volume Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as alc/vol or ABV) is a common measure of the amount of Alcohol (drug), alcohol contained in a given alcoholic beverage. It is defined as the volume the ethanol in the liquid would take if separated from the rest ...

(ABV). At the time, Gaétan Picon had created the first distillery to produce ''African bitters'' in an Algerian village. He then went on to open a number of other distilleries in Constantine, Bône and Algiers. In 1862, the French government invited industry to take part in the

Universal Exhibition A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition, is a large global exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specific site for a perio ...

in London.

Jean-Baptiste Nouvion Jean-Baptiste Nouvion (30 September 1833 – 1 August 1898) was a French prefect and a colonial administrator in Algeria. He made the success of the French aperitif Sirop de Picon. Career He started his career as chief of staff of the Civil g ...

, the sub-prefect of

Philippeville Philippeville (; ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Namur, Belgium. The Philippeville municipality includes the former municipalities of Fagnolle, Franchimont, Jamagne, Jamiolle, Merlemont, Neuville, Om ...

, urged Gaétan Picon to bring his aperitif to the exhibition. But, failing to convince the manufacturer to take part, the sub-prefect stubbornly took it upon himself (without telling Mr. Picon) to ship a case of African Amer to London.Journal "L'Illustration" du 24 mai 1930 – histoire de l’apéritif amer Picon ou amer algérien The product ended up crowned with a bronze medal in the bitter aperitif category, greatly adding to Gaétan Picon's eventual fortune. In 1872, Gaétan Picon returned to France, creating the first factory for the production of Picon in Marseille, which is still in use today. In 1937, the company published a book called ''Histoire d'un Siècle Picon (1837–1937)''; the company slogan at the time was "" (literal translation: 'There is no longer any part of the world where Picon hasn't penetrated'). The slogan involves a common pun in French.

Today

Since 1995 Picon has diversified, and now makes two different aperitifs: * The original Picon bière, which accompanies beer. * Picon club, to drink in cocktails with dry white wine. In the 1970s, the strength of Picon was reduced to 25% ABV. In 1989, it was reduced yet again to 18% ABV. In 2003 the drink was mainly sold (70%) in the north and east of France. The total production was 4 million bottles.

Picon Punch Picon Punch, or simply Picon, is a highball cocktail made with an Amaro liqueur, soda water, grenadine, a splash of lemon, and a bit of brandy floating on top. The drink is identified as Basque, but was created by Basque immigrants in the U. ...

is a mixed drink featuring Amer Picon, created by Basque immigrants in the United States. It is primarily served in American Basque regions such as Boise, Idaho; Bakersfield, California; and throughout northern Nevada. The unavailability of Picon in America has led to the use of local substitutes. Torani Amer is the most popular, and the specified liquor in a bill proposing to make Picon Punch the official Nevada state cocktail. Other substitutes include Bigallet China-China liqueur, also made in France, but more available in the US, and clones produced by local distilleries, including The Depot Craft Brewery Distillery in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

and Golden Moon Distillery in

Golden, Colorado Golden is a home rule city that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 20,399 at the 2020 United States census. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the base of the Front Range of the Rocky Moun ...

. Amer Boudreau is a DIY drink created by Seattle-based mixologist, bartender and author Jamie Boudreau to the specifications of the pre-1970 recipe for Picon.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Picon (aperitif) Diageo brands Bitters