“My husband shook his head and looking toward the ocean said: And God said, ‘Tonight I’ll give them … chartreuse.’” MARILYN R. GARDNER
French liqueur. Firetruck. Shrek. Herb. Grasshopper. Fashion. All of these are identified with the color chartreuse, named after a 17th century French liqueur. In 1605, Carthusian monks in the Chartreuse Mountains of the French Alps created a secret blend of 130 herbs and botanicals and named the resulting colorful liquid “chartreuse.” Chartreuse was intended to be a medicine and was dubbed an “elixir of long life,” but people found it so tasty that they began consuming it as a beverage. The color chartreuse symbolizes joy, enthusiasm, brashness, growth and vitality.
Chartreuse was first commercially produced by the monks in 1737. It is now exclusively crafted at the Aiguenoire distillery in Entre-deux-Guiers, in the heart of the French Alps. The secret recipe for Chartreuse is passed down by Carthusian monks, and presently only two monks, Dom Benoit and Frère Jean-Jacques, know the exact blend of herbs, which are sourced from around the world. Ranging from citrus rind to thyme, to saffron and beyond, the precise recipe has remained a well-guarded secret for centuries. Green Chartreuse uses a sugar beet-based spirit, while Yellow Chartreuse uses a grape-based spirit. Both are distilled in copper pots, infused with botanicals and aged in charred oak barrels.
With the rise in popularity of this distinctive beverage during the 1800s, the drink’s color and name became synonymous. The word "chartreuse" was first used as a color name in a British fashion newspaper in 1884. From there, it made its way into women’s fashion and decor, including feather fans, beaded purses, silk gowns, draperies and pillows. It was especially popular in the 1920s, since it was viewed as bold, vibrant and rebellious. Like every other hue on the color wheel, chartreuse comes in different tints, shades and tones. Other familiar names in the chartreuse family are lime green, apple green and pistachio.
Chartreuse is a French liqueur made with 130 herbs and botanicals and the inspiration for the color’s name.
Where fashion and firefighting meet.
Since about 1973, chartreuse has been adopted as the color of firetrucks in Germany, Australia, Switzerland, parts of the U.S. and beyond. The use of fluorescent chartreuse firetrucks began when New York ophthalmologist Stephen Solomon produced research claiming that sparkling bright lime green paint would boost the nighttime visibility of emergency vehicles compared to those painted the traditional “fire engine red.” The reason for this is the Purkinje effect, where the photoreceptor cells in the eye’s retina do not function efficiently in dim light. Consequently, red will appear darker relative to other colors as light levels decrease. If dark enough, red objects can appear black.
