Meet Distillerie Blachère, the Provençal producer behind PAC Citron

There are some flavours that instantly take you back somewhere. For us, PAC Citron tastes of summer in Provence. A big glass, plenty of cold water, lots of ice cubes and a generous splash of PAC. When the temperature is well into the thirties, there are few things more refreshing. I have known PAC since I was a child. It has always been there in Provence, at home, on café terraces and behind the bar of the local bistrot. Ask for un PAC à l'eau and everyone knows exactly what you mean.

A very Provençal drink

What makes PAC particularly special is just how local it still feels. This isn't one of those French drinks you find everywhere in France. Travel much beyond Provence and the south of France and suddenly it becomes surprisingly difficult to find.

Around Avignon, Marseille, the Luberon and the Côte d'Azur, however, PAC is part of everyday summer life. It is one of those little things that reminds us why we started Tariette in the first place. Not necessarily the famous French products everyone already knows, but the things people who actually live in Provence grow up with.

Made in Provence since the 1960s

PAC is made by Distillerie Blachère, a wonderful old Provençal producer whose story goes back much further than the famous yellow bottle. Founded in Avignon in 1835, Blachère is the oldest distillery in Provence. Originally known for its traditional liqueurs and eaux-de-vie made with the herbs and plants of the region, the distillery later turned its hand to syrups. PAC Citron was born in the early 1960s after a succession of particularly hot summers. Louis Guiot, then running the distillery, wanted to create something genuinely refreshing for the people of Provence. The result was PAC: a lemon syrup made with lemon juice, with no colouring, neither overly sweet nor overly acidic. It quickly became the distillery's most famous creation.

Even the rather unusual name has a family story behind it. PAC was inspired by the names of Louis Guiot's children, Pierre, Annick, Christian and Colette. Today it is still made in the Vaucluse, at Blachère's distillery in Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

More than just PAC

PAC may be the bottle most people recognise, but Distillerie Blachère has been making drinks in Provence for nearly two centuries. Long before PAC came along, the distillery was known for traditional liqueurs made with the herbs, flowers and plants of Provence. They still produce some wonderful examples today, including La Comtadine, made with a blend of more than 40 plants, flowers and spices, and Élixir du Mont Ventoux, made with Provençal botanicals including thyme, rosemary, génépi, sage and verbena. They also make La Camarguaise, with thyme and rosemary, alongside aperitifs, fruit liqueurs and a whole collection of syrups.

And then there is Fun Blue. If you grew up in Provence, you probably know this one too. Brilliant blue, slightly strange looking and intensely fresh, it is a mint cordial with a distinctive chlorophyll flavour. Blachère created it in 1995 and, somehow, it works. On a scorching summer afternoon, served ice cold, it is wonderfully refreshing. But PAC remains the one everyone comes back for.

A Tariette favourite

We know how attached people are to it because whenever we forget to bring PAC to one of our markets, someone will inevitably be disappointed.

We have customers who buy several bottles at a time, regulars who come back specifically for it, and people who discover us after searching for somewhere to buy PAC Citron outside France. We have even had customers ordering it from as far away as the United States. Perhaps that tells you everything you need to know about this funny yellow bottle.

If you've never tried PAC Citron, start simply. A splash of PAC, lots of very cold water and plenty of ice. Then sit somewhere sunny and pretend you're on a café terrace in Provence.

But be warned. It is surprisingly addictive.

Discover PAC Citron at Tariette