●THE AMARO ATLAS

RECORD becherovka · EVIDENCE GRADE A · UNCLAIMED · LAST VERIFIED 2026-07-04

Becherovka

Karlovy Vary · Czech Republic · 50.231, 12.872

REGION: central europeTRADITION: Bylinný likérEST. 1807WEBSITE ↗

ZONE 01 — VERIFIED FACTS

Founded
1807 (continuously produced since); founder Josef Vitus Becher received the recipe, written by Dr. Frobrig, in 1805A·2
Brand development
Josef's son Johann Nepomuk (Jan) Becher took over his father's business and spent 40 years developing itA·2
Production site
Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic; modern factory built 2010 in the Bohatice district, capacity approx. 8 million litres/yearA·2
Ownership (current)
Maspex Group (Poland) finalised its purchase of Jan Becher – Karlovarská Becherovka a.s. — the Becherovka brand plus the Karlovy Vary production facility and warehouse — from Pernod Ricard on 30 April 2024, and has been responsible for production and sale since 1 May 2024A·5
Ownership (sale agreement)
Pernod Ricard agreed on 21 December 2023 to sell the Becherovka brand and its Karlovy Vary production and logistics facilities to Poland's Maspex GroupA·4
Trademark
Registered in 1922 (both 'Becherovka' and the German equivalent 'Becher Bitter'); iconic flat bottle design dates to 1866A·2
Recipe
Secret blend of approximately 20 herbs and spices, brought to Karlovy Vary from around the worldA·2
Water
Made with Karlovy Vary waterA·1
Recipe secrecy
Reportedly only two people know the full production process and are allowed to enter the Drogikamr room, where the herbs and spices are mixed weeklyC·3

ZONE 02 — AI-COLLATED SUMMARY

AI-ASSISTED · FROM GRADED PUBLIC SOURCES

Becherovka is a Czech herbal bitter produced continuously in Karlovy Vary since 1807. Founder Josef Vitus Becher received the recipe in 1805 from Dr. Frobrig; his son Jan Becher spent 40 years building the business. Production continues in Karlovy Vary at a modern facility built in 2010 in the Bohatice district. Pernod Ricard agreed in December 2023 to sell the brand, and Poland's Maspex Group completed the purchase on 30 April 2024. The secret recipe blends roughly 20 herbs and spices with Karlovy Vary water; reportedly only two people know the full process.

AI-collated from the graded sources below; operator review pending.

ZONE 03 — PRODUCER-SUBMITTED NOTES

This record is unclaimed. This space opens to the producer when they claim it. Producer claiming is coming soon.

PRODUCTS ON RECORD

Becherovka Original

38% ABV

BOTTLE IMAGE
ADDED BY THE PRODUCER

SUBCATEGORY bitterRING familyTRADITION Bylinný likérSELF-IDENTIFIED “an iconic Czech bitter”

A Czech herbal bitter made to a secret recipe of roughly 20 herbs and spices with Karlovy Vary water; typically served ice-cold. The producer's product page also styles it 'an iconic Czech herbal liqueur produced in Karlovy Vary for over 200 years'.

BOTANICAL MATRIX — 0 GRADED EDGES

NO GRADED BOTANICAL EDGES YET.

DESCRIPTORS

  • gingery ▮▮▮▮▮C·3
  • cinnamon ▮▮▮▮▮C·3

Becherovka Unfiltered

38% ABV · 500ML

BOTTLE IMAGE
ADDED BY THE PRODUCER

SUBCATEGORY — (family ring)RING familyTRADITION Bylinný likérSELF-IDENTIFIED “nefiltrovaný bylinný likér (unfiltered herbal liqueur), small batch”

A small-batch, unfiltered edition of Becherovka that the producer markets as faithful to the 1807 recipe, skipping filtration to leave the herbs' natural aromas undeveloped and settled. The result is a cloudier, wilder-tasting liqueur; the producer recommends shaking before pouring to redistribute settled botanical matter.

BOTANICAL MATRIX — 4 GRADED EDGES

  • clove · spice noteA·8
  • cinnamon · spice noteA·8
  • orange peel · citrus/aromaticA·8
  • mixed herbs and spices · base bittering/aromatic bill, inherited from the Original 1807 recipe (~20 herbs and spices)A·9

DESCRIPTORS

  • bitter-sweet ▮▮▮▮▮A·8
  • spiced ▮▮▮▮▮A·8
  • wild/raw herbal ▮▮▮▮▮A·8
  • citrus peel ▮▮▮▮▮A·8

Becherovka KV14 (Aperitiv KV 14)

40% ABV · 500ML

BOTTLE IMAGE
ADDED BY THE PRODUCER

SUBCATEGORY — (family ring)RING adjacentTRADITION Bylinný likérSELF-IDENTIFIED “hořký bylinný aperitiv (bitter herbal aperitif), classified by producer and Czech Wikipedia under "bitter"”

A dry, sugar-free bitter aperitif launched in 1966, blending Becherovka's herb bill with fresh orange notes and an addition of red wine and wine distillate. The printed ingredient list runs water, alcohol, red wine, wine distillate, herb and spice blend, natural orange aroma, then colourants, with alcohol declared ahead of the wine components, indicating a spirit-led rather than wine-led composition. Its dark red hue comes from added colourants (cochineal red E124 and caramel E150a), not from the wine itself.

BOTANICAL MATRIX — 2 GRADED EDGES

  • orange · fresh citrus top note (natural orange aroma)C·13
  • mixed herbs and spices · bittering/aromatic bill (undisclosed proprietary blend)C·13

DESCRIPTORS

  • dry ▮▮▮▮▮B·10
  • bitter ▮▮▮▮▮B·10
  • orange ▮▮▮▮▮C·13
  • red-wine tannic edge ▮▮▮▮▮C·13

SERVES

Beton

producer
  • · Becherovka
  • · Tonic water

Becherovka combined with tonic water; created for the Czech Pavilion at Montreal's Expo 67. The name 'Beton' means 'concrete' in Czech.C·3

ZONE 04 — COMMUNITY TASTING NOTES

RESERVED — community notes open in V2 with moderation and bias handling. The contributions ledger is already recording.

COMMON QUESTIONS

Where is Becherovka made?
Becherovka is made in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, and was founded in 1807.
What style of amaro is Becherovka?
On The Amaro Atlas, Becherovka Original is recorded in the family ring, bitter subcategory, within the Bylinný likér tradition. The producer describes it as "an iconic Czech bitter".

SOURCES — A–D GRADED (13)

  1. [1]ABecherovka — official homepage · Jan Becher – Karlovarská Becherovka / Maspex · producer-official · accessed 2026-07-04
  2. [2]AHow is Becherovka made? (History and Production) · Jan Becher – Karlovarská Becherovka / Maspex · producer-official · accessed 2026-07-04
  3. [3]CBecherovka · Wikipedia · database · accessed 2026-07-04Wikipedia is graded C per taxonomy rules regardless of content quality. Its ownership statement ('owned by Pernod Ricard') is stale — superseded by src5.
  4. [4]APernod Ricard to Sell Becherovka Iconic Czech Bitter to Maspex Group · Pernod Ricard · press-release · accessed 2026-07-04Official press release (21 December 2023) documenting the sale agreement to Maspex Group. States expected closing before end of June 2024; does not state ownership duration. Completion documented in src5.
  5. [5]ABecherovka now available in the Maspex Group range · Maspex Group · press-release · accessed 2026-07-04Acquirer's official press release: transaction finalised 30 April 2024; Maspex responsible for production and sale from 1 May 2024. Verified this session.
  6. [6]ABecherovka — products · Jan Becher – Karlovarská Becherovka / Maspex · producer-official · accessed 2026-07-04Confirms flagship product name 'Becherovka Original', described as 'An iconic Czech herbal liqueur produced in Karlovy Vary for over 200 years'.
  7. [7]ABecherovka — cocktails (BETON) · Jan Becher – Karlovarská Becherovka / Maspex · producer-official · accessed 2026-07-04Producer's own cocktails page lists BETON (Becherovka + tonic, first presented at Expo 67 in Montreal; became the Czech national cocktail in 2019) — verifies the serve's 'producer' kind.
  8. [8]ABecherovka Unfiltered (product page, Czech) · Jan Becher - Karlovarská Becherovka · producer-official · accessed 2026-07-05
  9. [9]AProducts and types of Becherovka (English product overview) · Jan Becher - Karlovarská Becherovka · producer-official · accessed 2026-07-05
  10. [10]BAperitiv KV 14 · Wikipedia (Czech) · database · accessed 2026-07-05Classifies product under bitter category; cites label composition and 1966 launch; re-verified 2026-07-05 against alkoholbot's literal ingredient list
  11. [11]CLiqueur "Becherovka" Unfiltered, 0.5 L · WineStyle · database · accessed 2026-07-05Confirms 38% ABV, 0.5L bottle, producer Jan Becher; official producer page does not itself state ABV/bottle size so this fact rests on grade-C corroboration
  12. [12]CBecherovka Unfiltered - Herbal Liqueurs · Bondston · database · accessed 2026-07-05Independently confirms 38% ABV and 0.5L, corroborating WineStyle
  13. [13]CKV14 Aperitiv 0,5l 40% · Alkoholbot.cz · database · accessed 2026-07-05Re-fetched 2026-07-05: gives the literal printed ingredient list (voda, líh, červené víno, vinný destilát, směs bylin a koření, přírodní pomerančové aroma, E124, E150a) in declared order; load-bearing for the spirit-vs-wine-base determination and for correcting the colour-source claim in the description

A producer-official / regulatory · B reputable published · C secondary · D community/unverified