#ojen

First Produced

1830 or so - the Pedro Morales family distillery began producing Ojen in its namesake city east of the sherry triangle in Andalusia the southernmost region of Peninsular Spain.*

1870 - Anis del Mono anisette starts production in a factory in Badalona, Spain. This sweet aniseed liqueur in particular is often mentioned as an Ojen substitute, though its not quite the same.†

1874 - Pedro Morales sets up a second location in Malaga, Spain to increase capacity.‡

1883 - Paul Gelpi and his brother Oscar own a liquor distribution company located at 43 Decatur Street in New Orleans and advertise 50 cases of OJEN of Majorca for sale which they claim is superior to ABSINTHE as an appetizer and tonic.1

Original Ojen Cocktail Created

1886 - Paul Gelpi was inaugurated as a member of the elite gentleman's club The Boston in February and it was there that the Ojen Cocktail was first mixed by adding a couple of dashes of Peychaud's bitters and soda water over cracked ice. Gelpi's role in the recipe is unclear as L. E. Jung suggests he or his company had invented the Ojen Cocktail.2,3

1910s - other Spanish brands of Ojen like Joaquin Bueno of Malaga and Manuel Fernández of Puerto de Santa Maria / Jerez (formerly called Xerés) along with New Orleans, Louisiana based manufacturer L.E. Jung & Wulff Company were gaining prominence.

1920 - the Morales distillery had to close due to a phylloxera plague that killed the vineyards around Malaga and apparently the last male heir took the secret family recipe to their grave.

1946 - Brennan's on Royal Street, a Creole restaurant in the French Quarter which started as the Vieux Carré located on Bourbon Street, opens and later features the Ojen Frappé on their brunch menu along with originals like Bananas Foster and Eggs Hussarde.

1961 - Juan Espada Fernández, who claims to be in possession of the original Ojen recipe via his father who is said to have been an employee of the Pedro Morales distillery, launches production of Aguardiente de Ojén after buying the still in 1958.

1974 - internal company conflicts cause the Juan Espada distillery in Ojén, Spain to permanently cease operation.

1990 - in the late 1980s, with sagging sales, the Fernandez family in Jerez de la Frontera was the last remaining ojen producer and decided to stop production but made one last batch of 500 cases totaling 6000 bottles for export to Martin Wine Cellar in New Orleans, Louisiana.4

Hoard Your Bottle Of Ojén - You Can't Buy Anymore

2009 - the last bottle of the Manuel Fernandez White Label Ojen was officially sold by Martin Wine Cellar.5

Fat Chance you'll be drinking Ojen on Fat Tuesday much longer.

Salvation

2013 - following an analysis of a specimen of the original brandy which showed 16 distinct herbs from the Sierra de las Nieves were used, Dominique Mertens Impex S.L. produces the first 3,000 bottles of an aniseed flavored spirit made from prickly pears on Ojén soil using traditional methods called ‘Aguardiente de Ojén La Giralda.’ 6

2015 - after sending samples of classic Ojen to the lab to reverse engineer and spending over two years of R&D time and talent developing its own distillate recipe labeled as Legendre Ojen after J. Marion Legendre, the inventor of Herbsaint, Sazerac Company was able put some of their new bottles of Ojén on the shelf between Christmas and New Year’s Eve well ahead of its goal for the February 9, 2016 Mardi Gras.7

Looks like the phrase “Una copita de Ojén” (a little glass of Ojén) followed by seven musical taps on the bar that was a ritual toast heard all over Spain for more than a hundred years can be resurrected once again now that this drink that starts with 'O' is back on the table.

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Behind The Bar - How To Make Ojen's Namesake Drink Recipes At Home

Ojen Cocktail (American / New Orleans Style):

2 oz Ojen

2 - 3 dashes Peychaud's bitters

Add the Ojen to a mixing glass filled with fine ice and dash on the bitters. Stir thoroughly with a bar spoon and strain into a long stem glass.8-14

The bitters give this Ojen a delicate rose-colored tinge. Therefore it masquerades under the name of “Pink Shimmy,” or pinque chemise, if you prefer the language of the fifty million who can’t be wrong.15

~ Stanley Clisby Arthur

Perfect for parading around during Mardi Gras carnival celebrations!

Note: many also add seltzer water to the formula above similar to the next recipe below.16-21 Sort of makes them the same then. Right down to the bitter end.

Ojen or Spanish Absinthe Cocktail:

1 jigger Ojen

2 - 3 drops Angostura bitters

seltzer water

Combine Ojen with ice in a large glass. Keep pouring seltzer into glass while stirring constantly with a spoon until the outside of the glass is frosted, frozen and frapped. Then add a few dashes of Angostura bitters and strain into a cocktail glass.22-26

Like above, many recipes eliminate the soda water, but the Angostura & Ojen only formula seems to originate and/or be preferred in Cuba.27-30

Ojen Special

1 ½ oz Ojen

2 - 3 dashes Peychaud's bitters

1 tsp sugar

2 - 3 oz seltzer

Stir all the ingredients together in a mixing glass filled with ice, strain and serve.31,32

Adding sugar to the recipe didn't start appearing in bartending books until the early to mid 1940s, but this may have been what the proprietor at the Lilac Time bar served to Mistah Gordon in To Have and Have Not.33 Or, at least, that's what another writer's interpretation of 1937 Ernest Hemingway was.34 Here's the passage:

"'Allo, 'allo, Mist' Gordon. What you have?" "I don't know," said Richard Gordon. "You don't look good. Whatsa matter? You don't feel good?" "No." "I fix you something just fine. Fix you up hokay. You ever try a Spanish absinthe, ojen?" "Go ahead," said Gordon. "You drink him you feel good. Want to fight anybody in a house," said the proprietor. "Make Mistah Gordon a ojen special." Standing at the bar, Richard Gordon drank three ojen specials but he felt no better; the opaque, sweetish, cold, licorice-tasting drink did not make him feel any different "Give me something else," he said to the bartender. "Whatsa matter? You no like a ojen special?" the proprietor asked. "You no feel good?" "No." "You got be careful what you drink after him."

Words to live by!

More Anisette Cocktails

Albion - dry gin, French vermouth, Cointreau, lemon juice and Ojen bitters.

Anis Del Mono Cocktail No. I - dry gin, Anis del Mono, bar syrup and thick cream with grated nutmeg.

Anis Del Mono Cocktail No. II - Anis del Mono, Cognac, Fernet Branca, Angostura bitters and lime or lemon juice.

Battle of New Orleans - bourbon, orange bitters, anisette, Peychaud's bitters, simple syrup and absinthe.

Beaux Arts Cocktail - gin, dry vermouth, sweet vermouth, orange juice, pineapple juice and anisette.

Black Gold Shot #2 - Goldschlager and Opal Nera or Romana Black sambuca.

Borden Chase - a Rob Roy with anise liqueur Pernod and orange bitters or you can use another pastis, like Ricard, Herbsaint, Absente, or Pastis Henri Baudoin.

Broken Spur Cocktail / Broker's Flip - white port, dry gin, sweet vermouth, egg yolk and anisette.

Café de Paris Cocktail / Hankow Special - egg white, anisette, fresh cream and dry gin.

Cattlin Cocktail - 1/4 each dry gin, Picard vermouth, Cora vermouth and ojen with one egg white.

Colony Club - gin, anisette and orange bitters.

Dream Cocktail - Cognac or brandy, orange liqueur and anisette.

Dubonnet Special - Dubonnet, dry gin, absinthe and anisette.

Dulcet - vodka, apricot flavored brandy, anisette, cream, lemon juice.

Green Opal Cocktail - Greenopal, dry gin and Ojen with both orange and Peychaud bitters.

Herbsaint Frappé - Herbsaint, simple syrup and carbonated water frapped in cracked ice.

Jellyfish Cocktail - blue curacao, Irish cream and white sambuca anise liqueurs with grenadine.

Jitters Cocktail - equal parts Ojen, gin and French vermouth. Note: this recipe first appeared on the back of Fernandez White Label Ojen bottles and was then published on page 39 of Famous New Orleans Drinks and How To Mix ’Em in 1937.

Marguerite Cocktail #3 - gin, French vermouth, orange bitters and anisette.

Narragansett - rye whiskey, Italian vermouth and anisette.

Pick-Up - 1/3 jigger each of Ojen, dubonnet and rum with one egg white and a dash of grenadine will pick up your spirits.

Slippery Nipple - Sambuca (Italian anise-flavoured liqueur) and Irish cream liqueur.

Snowball - creme de violette, anisette, white creme de menthe, sweet cream and dry gin.

Suisse Cocktail - pastis, anisette and egg white.

Turf Cocktail - gin, dry vermouth, anisette and bitters.

Yellow Daisy - dry gin, French vermouth, Grand Marnier and anisette.

Yellow Parrot - apricot brandy, yellow chartreuse and anisette.

Zazarac - rum, anisette, gomme syrup, whisky and angostura bitters.

Zenith Cocktail #2 - anisette, Angostura bitters, dry gin and whiskey.

References

* - Aguardiente de Ojén. (2021, January 27).

† - New Orleans Nostalgia, "Banana Republics and Ojen Cocktails Update.", Ned Hémard, 2011.

‡ - "Ojén, the rebirth of an anise." WHISKYMag.fr 20 September, 2018.

1 - "50 Cases OJEN of Majorca for sale." The Times-Picayune from New Orleans, Louisiana. 27 May, 1883.

2 - Landry, Stuart O. History of the Boston Club (New Orleans: Pelican Publishing Company, 1938), 229. Print.

3 - The Mixologist - How To Mix The Mixings (New Orleans: L.E. Jung & Wulff Co. Inc., 1933). Print. via Picken, Conor and Dischinger, Matthew Southern Comforts: Drinking and the U.S. South (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2020). Print.

4 - La Fille. "Classic New Orleans: A Brief History of Ojen." La Fille De La Ville 1 April, 2009.

5 - Price, Todd A. "Last bottle of locally popular Ojen liqueur sold." The Times-Picayune from New Orleans, Louisiana 16 July, 2009.

6 - Pérez, Mónica. "Belgian business revives the production of a traditional spirit from Ojén." SURinEnlish.com 14 February, 2014.

7 - Forbes, Seánan. "Ojen Makes Its Long-Awaited Comeback." Tales of the Cocktail 09 February, 2016.

8 - J. A. Grohusko, Jack's Manual on The Vintage and Production, Care, and Handling of Wines, Liquors, etc. A Handbook of Information for Home, Club or Hotel, 3rd Edition (New York: McClunn & Co., 1910), 69. Print.

9 - Jacques Straub, Straub's Manual of Mixed Drinks (Chicago: The Hotel Monthly, John Willy, 1914), 33. Print.

10 - Hugo R. Ensslin, Recipes For Mixed Drinks (New York: Fox Printing House, 1917), 62. Print.

11 - El Arte De Hacer Un Cocktail Y Algo Más (Havana: Imprenta Fernandez Solana Y Ca. - Obsequio De La Cia Cervecera Internacional S. A., 1927), 173. Print.

12 - Herbert Jenkins LTD, A Life-time Collection of 688 Recipes for Drinks (London: Purnell and Sons, 1934), 37. Print.

13 - John Held Jr., Peychaud's New Orleans Cocktails (New Orleans: A. M. & J. Solari, LTD., 1935), 27. Print.

14 - Patrick Gavin Duffy, The Official Mixer's Manual. The Standard Guide for Professional and Amateur Bartenders Throughout the World (New York: Blue Ribbon Books, 1940), 201. Print.

15 - John Held Jr., Peychaud's New Orleans Cocktails (New Orleans: A. M. & J. Solari, LTD., 1935), 32. Print. Pink Shimmy is a copyrighted and trademarked name for The Ojen Cocktail (American / New Orleans Style) owned by Solari's New Orleans. It was sold pre-mixed and bottled using either Fernandez White Label Spanish Ojen or Solari's Ojen and Peychaud's bitters.

16 - Geo. R. Washburne and Stanley Bronner, Beverages De Luxe (Louisville: The Wine and Spirit Bulletin, 1914), 93. Print.

17 - J. A. Grohusko, Jack's Manual on The Vintage and Production, Care, and Handling of Wines, Liquors, etc. A Handbook of Information for Home, Club or Hotel (New York: McClunn & Co., 1916), 61. Print.

18 - Jere Sullivan, The Drinks of Yesteryear - A Mixology (New Haven: J. Sullivan, 1930), 24. Print.

19 - Albert Stevens Crockett, Old Waldorf Bar Days (New York: Aventine Press, 1931), 152. Print.

20 - Stanley Clisby Arthur, Famous New Orleans Drinks and How To Mix ’Em (New Orleans: Harmanson Publisher, 1937), 40. Print.

21 - Owen, D. (Writer), Lealos, C. (Director). (2015, February 9). Dead in New Orleans (Season 1, Episode 15) M. Bukhonina, E. Comerford-Rubin (Executive Producers) Booze Traveler. Travel Channel. Jack Maxwell hunts for the "almost extinct" liqueur Ojén which is the official booze of Mardi Gras and is seen as bad luck not to drink it. Fortunately he scores at Brennan's Restaurant where he is served from a secret stash of Fernandez White Label Ojen that is kept under lock and key. His first reaction is that it tastes like liquid Good & Plenty, the sweet black licorice barrels coated in bright pink and white hard candy shells.

22 - Jacques Straub, Straub's Manual of Mixed Drinks (Chicago: R. Francis Welsh, 1913), 35. Print.

23 - Thomas Bullock, The Ideal Bartender (St. Louis: Buxton & Skinner, 1917), 44. Print.

24 - El Arte De Hacer Un Cocktail Y Algo Más (Havana: Imprenta Fernandez Solana Y Ca. - Obsequio De La Cia Cervecera Internacional S. A., 1927), 51. Print.

25 - Gerardo Corrales, Club de Cantineros de la Rupublica de Cuba - Manual Oficial (Havana: José Cuervo, 1930), 54. Print.

26 - Pedro Chicote, La Ley Mojada (Madrid: Sucesores de Rivadeneyra, S. A., 1930), 203. Print.

27 - Segundo Menénez & Manuel Rodriguez, Bar La Florida Cocktails (Havana: Obispo y Monserrate, 1930), 64. Print.

28 - Bartender's of the Hotel Lincoln, Hotel "Lincoln" Cock-tail Book (Havana: Excelsior, 1937), 52. Print.

29 - Salvador Trullos Mateu Recetario Internacional de Cocktails (Havana: O'Reilly, 1937), 112. Print.

30 - Constantino "Constante" Ribalaigua, Floridita Cock-tails (Havana: El Floridita, 1939), 52. Print.

31 - Oscar Haimo of the Hotel Pierre, Cocktail Digest (Brooklyn, New York: Comet Press, 1943), 55. Print.

32 - Lucius Morris Beebe, The Stork Club Bar Book (New York: Rinehart, 1946), 89. Print.

33 - Ernest Hemingway, To Have and Have Not (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1937), 191. Print.