Bärenfang or Meschkinnes is a German

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

-flavoured

liqueur A liqueur ( , ; ) is an alcoholic drink composed of Liquor, spirits (often rectified spirit) and additional flavorings such as sugar, fruits, herbs, and spices. Often served with or after dessert, they are typically heavily sweetened and un-age ...

based on

vodka Vodka ( ; is a clear distilled beverage, distilled alcoholic beverage. Its varieties originated in Poland and Russia. Vodka is composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impurities and flavourings. Traditionally, it is ...

. It is usually available as Teucke & Koenig Bärenjäger a commercial brand of Bärenfang in English-speaking countries. means 'bear trap'; means 'bear hunter'. ''Meschkinnes'', a term mostly used by people from

East Prussia East Prussia was a Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1772 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 1871); following World War I it formed part of the Weimar Republic's ...

, comes from Lithuanian , meaning 'male bear'. Bärenfang has an alcohol content of 30%–45% ABV (60–90 proof). In Germany, Bärenfang is often made at home since the basic recipe and many variations of it are readily available. Most homemade Bärenfang is based on vodka, but some recipes with a higher alcohol content are based on neutral spirit. Bärenfang is always made with honey from

nectar Nectar is a viscous, sugar-rich liquid produced by Plant, plants in glands called nectaries, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollination, pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to an ...

because honey from honeydew may have a bitter aftertaste.

History

Bärenfang was first developed in

in the 15th century. Monasteries were integral to its early production and development. It was the first commercial brand of this liqueur that was produced in the capital city of

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

; it is now produced by the Teucke & Koenig company in the town of Steinhagen, Germany. A picture of a

fur trapper A fur is a Softness, soft, thick growth of hair that covers the skin of almost all mammals. It consists of a combination of oily #Guard hair, guard hair on top and thick #Down hair, underfur beneath. The guard hair keeps moisture from reaching t ...

trapping a bear is shown on bottles of Teucke & Koenig's Bärenjäger. Today, Teucke & Koenig is owned by Schwarze & Schlichte, located in the town of Oelde in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

, Germany. Schwarze & Schlichte also make another brand of Bärenfang that is bottled at 33% ABV (66 proof). The Bärenfang produced by Teucke & Koenig is widely exported. It is usually sold under the brand name Bärenjäger outside of Germany. There are other producers of Bärenfang in Germany, but their products are less often available in other countries.

Awards

Bärenjäger has been reviewed by the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, which gave it gold and silver medals in 2011 and 2012 respectively. Wine Enthusiast rated Bärenjäger in its "85–89" category. Proof66's averaging of these scores produced an overall score that classified it as a "Tier 1" spirit.

References

External links

Schwarze & Schlichte website
(German)
U.S. website
(English, requires Flash) {{DEFAULTSORT:Barenjager German liqueurs Honey liqueurs and spirits German distilled drinks German brands East Prussian cuisine

History

Awards

See also

References

External links