Fleur de Sureau (Elderflower) (700 ml)

Massenez, founded in 1870 in Alsace's Villé Valley, built its reputation on cold-process extraction — a deliberate rejection of heat-driven distillation for delicate botanicals where high temperatures destroy the very compounds that define the ingredient. Fleur de Sureau is produced by macerating freshly harvested elderflower blossoms in neutral spirit at controlled low temperatures, preserving the labile muscat-like esters and green-floral aldehydes that evaporate above 40°C. The Alsace foothills supply elderflower from hedgerows at moderate elevation, where the continental climate — warm days, cool nights — concentrates blossom aromatics before the brief May–June harvest window. The liqueur is bottled at 20% ABV, keeping sweetness integrated rather than cloying, and undergoes no heat treatment post-maceration to protect aromatic fidelity. What separates this expression from St-Germain-style elderflower liqueurs is Massenez's insistence on single-botanical focus with no citrus or grape-must blending — the result is a botanically uncut elderflower profile. Best used within 18 months of purchase; store away from light to prevent oxidative flattening of the volatile top notes.