Made from a secret recipe of about 20 herbs and spices, Becherovka is a Czech liqueur with a history that’s just as rich and complex as its flavor. Pronounced beck-ur-ohv-kuh, the spirit was invented when businessman and pharmacist Josef Vitus Becher began experimenting with liqueurs.

What does Becherovka taste like?

–Erica Sweeny, Wine Enthusiast

”  Cloves and anise dominate Becherovka’s flavors, says Tomas Bohm, chef and owner of The Pantry Eateries in Little Rock, Arkansas. Bohm is a Czech Republic native and was born about 15 minutes from Karlovy Vary.

“It has a nice, sweet-forward flavor,” he says, but it finishes with a bit of bitterness from the cloves and then “a little bit of the licorice comes through,” from the anise. “I can tell you in my lifetime, I’ve drunk liters and liters of Becherovka.”

With all the herbs and spices, Becherovka offers a “blast of flavor,” says Ebony Austin, owner and head mixologist at Nouveau Bar & Grill in College Park and Jonesboro, Georgia. “Specifically, you’ll get a tingle of cloves and cinnamon.” The anise flavor is subtle, she says, not as intense as Jagermeister.

“It tastes like Christmas—baking spices, like cinnamon, citrus and ginger,” says Ashley Mac, bar manager of Nihao in Baltimore.

Bohm agrees that Becherovka features flavors that Americans associate with the holidays, like clove and cinnamon, but notes that people in the Czech Republic drink it all year.  “