Riga Black Balsam liqueur is a storied liqueur beginning life as a medicinal in 1752. We tend to think of it as an herbal liqueur int the bitters tradition of German krauter liqueurs or Italian amaro liqueurs. They claim to use 24 different herbs to infuse the spirit, including linden blossom, birch bud, valerian root, raspberry, bilberry, ginger, nutmeg, and peppercorn. It is given a brief aging in oak prior to bottling.

Latvijas Balzams traces its founding back to 1752 with a particular kind of black balsam liqueur invented by Abraham Kunce as a medicinal. The true production began in earnest in 1847 with a factory made by Albert Volfshmitt with the company formed as Latvijas Balzams in 1900. Nationalization and world wars disrupted production to some extent regaining its name in 1970; it became privatized as a stock company in 1997. The company is owned by the SPI Group, who also owns the Stolichnaya brand and outsources much of the vodka production to that distillery.