Lillet Blanc

Also known as “white Lillet”. Proprietary French quinquina. A mild aromatized wine with an erratic history (see Kina Lillet entry), that enjoys more global availability and popularity, in today’s form, than probably at any other time in the past. Caveat emptor: both a straw-colored and deep red-colored product are marketed under identical “Lillet” labeling. A pre-1980s recipe that specifies “Lillet” without also specifying “rouge”, “red” or “sweet” most likely implies Kina Lillet (the defunct product). A post-1980s recipe specifying “Lillet” without also specifying “rouge”, “red”, or “sweet” most likely implies the current straw-colored Lillet product. Technically, quinquina is ad hoc generic for sweetened fortified aperitif wines containing quinine (thus “quinquina”) and spices. The major brands are: Bonal, Byrrh, Dubonnet, Lillet, and St. Raphael. The quinine is the bitter constituent which promotes production of digestive enzymes and, therefore, appetite. Most quinquinas are produced from mistelle (fortified grape juice) rather than actual fermented wine. Quinquinas are similar to vermouths, but emphasize other botanicals. Quinquina products tend to be idiosyncratic and they don’t really substitute for each other in mixed drinks—a substitution might produce a palatable drink, but it will probably be a completely different drink. In mixed drinks, the fact is that, in historic mixed drink recipes, “quinquina” meant Dubonnet (the red stuff), period. If another product was intended, it would be specified by name.