Tempus Fugit Spirits, an absinthe and liqueur importer in Petaluma, has just released Liqueur de Violettes, a floral liqueur based on a 19th century recipe made from — surprise! — violets. Those purple petals also happen to be hand picked in the Cote d’Azur, a.k.a. the French Riviera, and so we expect to soon be sipping all kinds of trendy bar concoctions with names like “Le Spring de Violettes” and “Eau de Baroness de Rothschild” (surely there are some violets somewhere on the massive family estate in the Cote d’Azur).echnically speaking,

Liqueur de Violettes is not the same thing as creme de violette. A creme is typically dubbed as such because it contains more sugar than a liqueur, not because it contains, well, cream. The latter would be a cream liqueur. And yet that creme de violette versus liqueur de violette sugar dosage designation is subjective, so you very well might find a creme that hovers around same glycemic index as a liqueur. Nor are all violet liqueurs made from fresh flowers — many are artificially flavored and colored. But until recently, you really couldn’t get faux or real violet liqueurs in the U.S., so all that really doesn’t matter. Confused? So are we. Stick to the all-natural versions of either and you’ll come out ahead.