Chartreuse 1970-1980

The Chartreuses from the 1970's and 1980's (Voiron)

During the 1970's and 1980's, the Chartreuse brand was in a bit of a slump and wanted to expand its product range. In France, the Compagnie Française de la Grande Chartreuse gave birth to a new company in 1970, called Chartreuse Diffusion. As its name suggests, this new entity was in charge of communication and marketing, to promote the Chartreuse liqueur all over the country and the world at large. This was a private company, although the Carthusian Fathers were the majority shareholders.

As the market was starting to stagnate, due to increased taxation of alcohol and low exports, Chartreuse Diffusion convinced the monks to diversify. Thus, in less than a dozen years, the Carthusians worked on a slew of new products and started to base their communication strategy on something else than the Grande Chartreuse Monastery, to increase their market share. Hence the liqueur's new marketing slogan: "Osez le verre vert" (which means "Dare to try the green glass"). This was unheard of for a brand that always emphasized its image of timeless liqueur.

The monks experimented for a few years. In 1972, a first blend of Green Chartreuse and orange zest saw the light of day: the Orange Chartreuse (17-20 proof). Three years later, the Blueberry Chartreuse made its official debut as well: a 17 proof blend of Green Chartreuse and blueberry juice. The Anisette Chartreuse was sold for the first time in 1976, by the Chartreuse SAE company (the new name adopted by the Spanish Unión Agricola). Like the orange one, there were two versions of this blend of Chartreuse and anise juice: 22 proof (only sold between 1976 and 1978) and 26 proof (only sold between 1978 and 1980).

During this time period the Carthusian Fathers also came up with the famous Génépi, which was released in the market in 1984 (the same year the Strawberry Chartreuse came out and three years before the Blackcurrant Chartreuse). Although the sales of all these new types of liqueurs remained confidential, the Chartreuse brand slowly regained traction. Ultimately, the company decided to go back to its roots and focus on the Green and Yellow Chartreuses once again.

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