Bols liqueurs were created by alcohol tycoon Lucas Bols. The history of the brand is a stunning success and unprecedented popularity, which has not died out in our time. The most popular liquors in the world were invented in the Netherlands - a country where light drugs are legalized and the best tulips on the planet grow. The management of the Bols company has changed more than once, but no matter who the owner is at the helm, each of them sets the main task - to adhere to the methods of making the drink that the founder of the brand used.
Product history
Liqueurs "Bols" appeared in the XVI century. Then pharmacist Lucas Bols in the Dutch capital opened a small distillery called Het Lootsje. Here he prepared and sold liquors that he insisted on herbs. Although the drinks contained alcohol, they were positioned as medicinal liquors.
Gradually, Amsterdam began to turn into a port and a world-class shopping center. New seasonings, herbs and spices began to be brought here daily. A small distillery begins to develop dynamically, and new Bols liqueurs appear. Lucas Bols opens up new aromatic combinations and tastes. His constant experiments led to the lightning-fast take-off of Bols Corporation.
For approximately 250 years, the empire was led exclusively by members of the Lucas Bols family. But when her last male heir died, the company was acquired by financier Gabriel Waut. It happened in 1816.
New life of the old corporation
Bols liqueurs became popular and recognizable all over the planet, so the company that produced them was able to preserve its historical name. The success of the enterprise was unlimited, but despite this, in 1868 it was again transferred to other owners. This time, the Moltzer family acquired all the rights to the company. It is these owners who over the 30 years of managing the company increased the production and sale of the drink and built three new plants.
This time, representatives of the empire dubbed the "Age of Moltzer." It was the marketing policy of the Moltzer that Bols (liquor) became popular abroad and almost all European royal houses began to acquire it. The plants that were called and are called Lucas Bols spread throughout the world.
Modern Bols liquors are produced according to the same recipes and technologies as four centuries ago. Today the company creates 38 types of various liquors, which it sells in 200 countries of the world. The strength of drinks is 17-50%.
Bols liquor line
Lucas Bols and his followers created many variations of the famous liquor. Current manufacturers continue to develop new flavors that are adapted to the company's old family recipes. So, you can highlight the most popular types of Bols liquor:
- Bols - Lychee liquor ("Lychee") - the drink has the taste and aroma of lychee berries. The strength of the product is 17%.
- Bols Gold Strike ("Gold Strike") - strong alcohol, which includes a mixture of nuts, roots, a variety of forest herbs, orange peel with Curacao and natural cinnamon infusion. The bottle with the drink is decorated with thin petals made of real gold.
- Bols Coffee ("Coffee") - the product has the taste of coffee. Its strength reaches 24%. Thanks to the percolation of the grains of Colombian coffee, it is possible to achieve the coffee taste of liquor.
- Bols Butterscotch ("Butterscotch") - different taste of toffee caramel and natural toffee.
- Bols Coconut ("Coconut") - the strength of the product is 17% and it is made on the basis of coconut and light rum.
- Bols Banana ("Banana") - as the name implies, the liquor has a banana flavor. It also feels like vanilla. Its strength is 17%. Natural banana extract is used as a raw material for the preparation of this variety.
- Bols Kirsh ("Kirsch") - a drink with the smell and taste of distilled and fermented cherries. The liquor is transparent in appearance and contains natural juice of the Black Forest cherries, which are called kirsch.
These are far from all types of Bols liqueurs existing today. We have described only the most common.
The most popular drink
The best-selling, successful and famous drink in the Bols line is Blue Curacao. In the Russian version, this name sounds like “Blue Curacao”. Alcohol has an orange smell and taste. Its strength reaches 21%. For the production of this variety of the product using natural aromas of red oranges, tangerines and oranges, which are grown in South Asia.
Blue Curacao is characterized by a deep blue tint. It is best to drink this drink in its pure form, adding a little ice. This species is a true star in the Lucas Bols liquor series. This drink was formerly called Crème de Ciel, and today it is one of the oldest flavors of the entire Bols palette. Blue Caracao is an excellent ingredient for many cocktails.
Distinctive liquor
Advocaat Cream Liqueur has a very quiet name, but no other liquor from the Bols series has achieved such a stunning success as Lawyer. Even the "Blue Caracao" cannot boast of such popularity. Advocaat is an egg creamy drink with a bright yellow tint. It smells of almonds, ripe banana and vanilla. Such a composition awakens an extraordinary appetite.
Insist product on grape brandy. Therefore, “Advocate” can be not only an amazing aperitif, but also an excellent digestif: a huge portion of sugar in a drink is responsible for its sweetness.
The original Bols Advocaat recipe was brought from Brazil. There, the base of the drink was an avocado, which gave the name to this variety of liquor. The recipe was borrowed by colonists from Portugal, but instead of avocados, they began to use egg yolks.
Bols special liquors
The Dutch company makes all its products from natural ingredients. All drinks have the taste of fruits, aromatic herbs and berries. The most successful among them were orange options: Bols Triple Sec and Bols Blue.
Only this company produces foam liqueurs. A bottle with such a drink has a special nozzle that turns the contents of the container into a huge cloud of bubbles. It lasts about a quarter of an hour. Such liqueurs form the basis of Bols’s signature foam cocktails.
All bottles of liquors are similar to skittles, which are used in bowling. Bols translates to "pins." Maybe that's why the bottles have such a design.
Reviews on liquors
Each Bols liquor receives rave reviews. The taste of any type of gourmet is noted as delicate, delicate and fresh. People also say that all liquors are beautiful both in pure form and as part of various cocktails. According to those who have already experienced the extraordinary tastes of the Bols line of liquors, they have lost quite a lot without tasting the famous drinks before. After you try these products, you will immediately want to supplement them with the collection of your bar.
All drinks represent an unrivaled flavor range, which in cocktails and in its pure form “sounds” differently. Having at least one type of popular alcohol in your home is considered a great honor, and any gourmet will tell you about this.