Cuisine & Wine Asia — May-June 2017

B

entianna – of Slovak origin – is a honey-based

liqueur that is a special blend of honey, yellow

gentian, grape juice, tokay wine and 13 selected

herbs. First conceived in 1436 by Benedictine

monks, the masters in herbalism who managed

to fit everything the body needs into one recipe

and a single bottle. The monastery, which had

been the first home of the original recipe and the

predecessor of the current Bentianna, caught fire

and the recipe was lost for five long centuries. It

was only in 2012 that Joseph Benjamin Benian

found leads to the historical recipe during his

studies of old family archives and materials. Deeply

fascinated by the taste, he was driven to create his

own drink, and thus began the journey to create

the modern-day Bentianna recipe.

Bentianna may be drunk neat or as cocktail and fits

in the trend of low-alcohol drinks. The ingredients

in Bentianna have been blended harmoniously

with beneficial effects – such as the yellow gentian

(which was rumoured to have prolonged life), and

pure forest honey, one of the most reliable guards

of health and immunity. The fermentation of this

honey creates natural alcohol, which is then mixed

with natural ingredients and aged from six up to

12 months in barrels from wine. The finished

product has an intense colour of autumn leaves

with a golden glint with a complex aroma of forest

honey with overtones of raisins, finishing with a

hint of caramel and candied citrus peel. Its flavour

has sweetness that isn’t sharp – but beautifully

balanced. In the beginning one may feel the

juiciness of grapes and raisins marinated in forest

honey but are eventually take over by candied

orange peel and grapefruit. OT

Bentianna retails at SGD$46.90 and is available at

http://www.redmart.com/marketplace

For more information, visit http://www.bentianna.com

The Elixir Of Life

By Olivia Tiboleng

Contact: [email protected]

http://www.bridordefrance.com

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mini-treats

Mini-Treats, a new mix of four pure butter mini

viennoiseries with original shapes and generous toppings

made using mouth-watering recipes.

when viennoiseries

meet confectionery!

Design © HAPPY SOUP. Photography © A Point Studio. Non binding photos.

Mini Chocolate

Tw i st

Mini Praline

Finger

Mini Raspberry

Roll

Mini Triangle

with Vanilla

*Photography courtesy of Bentianna.