Jägermeister

Jägermeister stylized as "Jägermeiſter", is a German spiced digestif liqueur.[1] Developed in 1934 by Wilhelm and Curt Mast,[2] it has an alcohol by volume of 35% (61 degrees proof, or US 70 proof). The recipe of 56 herbs and spices has not changed since its creation,[3] and the drink continues to be sold in a green glass bottle.[4] It is the flagship product of Mast-Jägermeister SE headquartered in Wolfenbüttel, Germany.

History

Wilhelm Mast originated as a vinegar manufacturer and wine trader in the city of Wolfenbüttel, Germany. His son, Curt Mast (1897–1970), was passionate about the production of spirits and liqueurs and always keen to help his father in the business even at an early age. In 1934, at age 37, Curt devised the recipe for "Jägermeister" after he took over his father's business.[4]

Curt was an enthusiastic hunter.[5] The name Jägermeister in German literally means "Master Hunter", "Hunt Master", or "master of the hunt".[6][7] It is a title for a high-ranking official in charge of matters related to hunting and gamekeeping. The term "Jägermeister" had existed as a job title for many centuries. In 1934, the new Reichsjagdgesetz (Reich hunting law) redefined the term to apply to senior foresters, game wardens, and gamekeepers in the German civil service. Hermann Göring was appointed Reichsjägermeister (Reich hunting master) when the new hunting law was introduced.[8] Thus, when Jägermeister was introduced in 1935, its name was already familiar to Germans, who sometimes called the product "Göring-Schnaps".[9]

Jägermeister came to greater international attention particularly through the work of Sidney Frank (1919–2006), who ran an American liquor importing company. From the 1980s, he promoted the drink in the youth and student market as a drink for parties—a quite different niche to its traditional conservative brand position in its native German market.[10] New York magazine quoted a market research firm describing him as "a promotional genius" for making "a liqueur with an unpronounceable name...drunk by older, blue-collar Germans as an after-dinner digestive aid... synonymous with 'party'".[11] The Mast-Jägermeister company ultimately purchased Sidney Frank Importing in 2015.[12]

Composition

Jägermeister is a type of liqueur called Kräuterlikör (herbal liqueur). It is akin to other European liqueurs, such as Gammel Dansk from Denmark, Ratafia from Catalonia, Făt-Frumos balsam and Nucul de Aur from Moldova, Beerenburg from the Netherlands, Unicum from Hungary, Becherovka from the Czech Republic, Gorzka Żołądkowa from Poland, Demänovka from Slovakia, Pelinkovac from Croatia, Riga Black Balsam from Latvia, Gorki List from Serbia, Fernet-Branca from Italy, Licor Beirão from Portugal, and Chartreuse and Bénédictine from France. In contrast to those beverages, Jägermeister has a sweeter taste. In Germany itself, there are quite a few competitors, such as Killepitsch, Kuemmerling, Schierker Feuerstein, Schwartzhog, Wurzelpeter, and Underberg, some of which are as sweet as Jägermeister.

Jägermeister's ingredients include 56 herbs, fruits, roots, and spices, including citrus peel, licorice, anise, poppy seeds, saffron, ginger, juniper berries, and ginseng.[13] These ingredients are ground, then steeped in water and alcohol for two to three days. This mixture is filtered and stored in oak barrels for about a year. Then the liqueur is filtered again and mixed with sugar, caramel and alcohol.

The company recommends that Jägermeister be kept on ice and served cold, and suggests that it be kept in a freezer at −18 °C (0 °F) or on tap between -15 and -11 C.[14]

Contrary to a rumor that has circulated on the internet, Jägermeister does not contain deer or elk blood.[13]

Label

The label on Jägermeister bottles features a glowing Christian cross seen between the antlers of a stag.[15][16] This image is a reference to the two Christian patron saints of hunters: Hubert of Liège and Eustace, both of whom converted to Christianity after experiencing a vision in which they saw a Christian cross between the antlers of a stag.[15][16][17][18]

The product name is written in the textura typeface and is one of the few surviving examples of the use of the long s in print.

The label contains the following verse from the poem Weidmannsheil, by the forester, hunter, and ornithologist Oskar von Riesenthal (although, von Riesenthal is not credited on the label.)[19]

Das ist des Jägers Ehrenschild, dass er beschützt und hegt sein Wild, weidmännisch jagt, wie sich's gehört, den Schöpfer im Geschöpfe ehrt.

According to Mast-Jägermeister SE,[20] the translation is:

It is the hunter's honour that he Protects and preserves his game, Hunts sportsmanlike, honours the Creator in His creatures.

A loose translation which preserves the rhyme and meter is:

This is the hunter's badge of glory, That he protect and tend his quarry, Hunt with honour, as is due, And through the beast to God is true.

Cocktails

• A shot glass of Jägermeister dropped into a glass of Red Bull energy drink makes a cocktail called a Jägerbomb.[21]
• A Surfer on Acid is made with equal parts of Jägermeister, Malibu, and pineapple juice.[22]
• The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is a shot made with equal parts Jägermeister, Rumple Minze, Goldschläger, and Bacardi 151.[23]
• Starry Night shot consists of 2/3 shot of Jägermeister and 1/3 shot of Goldschläger.[24]
• The Redheaded Slut, also known as a ginger bitch, is a cocktail made of Jägermeister, peach-flavored Schnapps, and cranberry juice.[25]

Line extensions

Marketing

Gallery

See also

• Fernet Branca

External links