Jägermeister

Infobox Beverage
name = Jägermeister


type = Digestif
abv = 35%
proof = 70
manufacturer = Mast-Jägermeister AG
distributor =
origin = Wolfenbüttel, Germany
introduced = 1935
discontinued =
color = Dark brown
variants =
related =

Jägermeister (IPA|ˈjeːgəˌmɑɪstʰə) is a German 70-proof digestif [ [http://www.drinksint.com/articles/51703/The-bitter-truth.aspx?category=9050 The bitter truth] , Drinks International, 1 October 2007] that is made with herbs and spices. It is the flagship product of Mast-Jägermeister AG, headquartered in Wolfenbüttel, south of Braunschweig, Germany.

Contrary to an urban legend, it does not contain any deer or elk blood. [ [http://www.snopes.com/business/secret/jagermeister.asp Jägermeister contains deer or elk blood] ]

General

On its website, the producer recommends that Jägermeister be consumed cold and suggests that it be kept in a freezer at -18°C (0°F), or on tap between -15° and -11°C (5° to 12°F).

Jägermeister’s ingredients include rum, cane sugar, beet sugar, herbs and spices. It is a digestif spirit similar to other central European stomach bitters, such as Gammel Dansk from Denmark, Unicum from Hungary, and Becherovka from the Czech Republic. In contrast with these beverages, Jägermeister has a sweeter taste.

Jägermeister can be mixed with Red Bull energy drink to make a cocktail called a Jägerbomb.

The Jägermeister logo, which shows the head of a stag with a glowing cross between its antlers, is a reference to the stories of Saint Hubertus and Saint Eustace. [ [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/06/arts/design/06bibl.html New York Times: Biblical Art in a Secular Century] ]

In Germany, the term "Bitter" applies only to those bitters that are actually bitter. Since Jägermeister has a semi-sweet taste, it is instead considered a "Kräuterlikör" (literally “herbal liqueur”); the technical term for it is "Halbbitter" (“half bitter”). Most of the many other brands of "Kräuterlikör" in Germany are not widely exported. Jägermeister is the market leader in Germany.Fact|date=January 2008

Translated literally, "Jägermeister" means “hunt-master,” combining "Jäger" (hunter) and "Meister" (master, in the sense of an accomplished professional). A free translation would be gamekeeper or forest supervisor. As a legal term, "Jägermeister" was introduced around 1934ish to designate senior foresters and gamekeepers in the forestry administration.

The poem

On the edge of the label on a Jägermeister bottle, there apppears the following poem by Otto von Riesenthal (1848):

:"Das ist des Jägers Ehrenschild,":"Daß er beschützt und hegt sein Wild,":"Weidmännisch jagt, wie sich’s gehört,":"Den Schöpfer im Geschöpfe ehrt."

A loose translation which preserves the rhyme and meter is:

:"This is the hunter’s badge of glory,:"That he protect and tend his quarry,:"Hunt with honour, as is due,:"And through the beast to God is true.

According to Mast-Jägermeister AG, the translation is:

:"It is the hunter’s honour that he:"Protects and preserves his game,:"Hunts sportsmanlike, honours the:"Creator in His creatures.

History

Jägermeister was originally marketed as a medicinal product; it was suggested as a cure for everything from coughing to digestive problems. It was used in World War II as a field anesthetic.Fact|date=April 2008

In Germany, it is still drunk as a digestif, sometimes humorously called "Leberkleister" (“liver glue”). It is also commonly used in small quantities around the home as an insect trap because flies and wasps are drawn to it.Fact|date=April 2008

The term "Jägermeister" was introduced in Germany in 1934 in the new "Reichsjagdgesetz" (Reich hunting law). The term was applied to senior foresters and gamekeepers in the German civil service. Thus, when the liquor was introduced in 1935, the name was already familiar to Germans. Curt Mast, the inventor of Jägermeister, was an enthusiastic hunter.

After Hermann Göring was appointed "Reichsjägermeister" (Reich huntmaster) in July 1934, the liquor was sometimes called "Göring-Schnaps" during the Nazi era.

ponsorship

From the 1970s, the Jägermeister brand has developed an association with motor racing, as they have sponsored various European racing teams, primarily those who fielded BMWs [ [http://rst.hot.lu/jgermeisterbmw BMW am Jägermeister Look] Photo series, auto racing ] and Porsches. These teams have competed in various major racing series including: Formula One (March and EuroBrun), DRM (Max Moritz, [ [http://www02.exoto.com/Collectibles/RacingLegends/Porsche935/HistoryRLG18093.asp Exoto's Racing Legends — Porsche 934 RSR/935 Turbo Jägermeister Gift Set] ] Kremer, Zakspeed), DTM and Group C (Brun Motorsport), who took the team title in the 1986 World Sportscar Championship.

Jägermeister's orange livery is one of the more commonly recognised in motorsport. The Spanish Fly slot car brand has recently brought out model cars with the distinctive design. More recently, they introduced the Naylor Racing NHRA Pro Stock car, minus its signature orange livery. [ [http://sev.prnewswire.com/auto/20060208/NYW11008022006-1.html Sidney Frank Importing Co., Inc.: Start Your Engines! Jägermeister Teams Up With Naylor Racing and the NHRA!] ] The livery's notability was proven when an article in the January 31, 2008, edition of Autosport listed it as one of twenty most iconic commercial color schemes. [Flying Colours by Henry Hope-Frost, Autosport, 31 January 2008]

Jägermeister also had its involvement in table tennis, as it sponsored a domestic team called "TTC Jägermeister Calw", and was a personal sponsor of Dragutin Šurbek.

Jägermeister is also associated with the German football league, especially in Bundesliga. In 1973, the Eintracht Braunschweig team were the first to sport a sponsor logo on their jerseys, although they refused a related attempt to re-name the team Eintracht Jägermeister. The move, very controversial at the time, paid the team 100,000 DM (€51,130) and introduced a new way of doing business in football that is worth millions today. Other clubs quickly followed suit. Now, Jägermeister sponsors advertising at various football stadiums in Germany. [ [http://www.jagermeister.com/welcome/welcome.com.aspx Official website in English] ]

In the United States, it became popular through the savvy promotion of Sidney Frank and through association with the wild partying of heavy metal bands such as Metallica, Mötley Crüe, Pantera, and Slayer. [Metallica and the Story of Thrash: Metal Hammer Special, dated July 2008, pp. 56–59.] Jägermeister is the tour sponsor of numerous rock and ska bands such as Spunge, Chimaira, Ramesses, GWAR, Dope, Hanzel und Gretyl, Hemlock, Mushroomhead, Orange Goblin, Dog Fashion Disco, Bloodhound Gang, SikTh, My Ruin, Corrupt Absolute, Electric Eel Shock, Big John Bates, Psychostick, and STEMM.

Jägermeister was also a major sponsor in the 2008 Rockstar Mayhem Fest, a large Metal tour including bands like Slipknot, Disturbed, 5 Finger Death Punch, and Underoath.

The Jägermeister Music Tour, which is owned by Sidney Frank Importing, is an event that is held each year in the spring and fall.

In 2008, Jägermeister moved into cyberspace and launched its own podcast, called [http://www.jagercast.ie “The Jägercast.”]

ee also

*Jägerbomb
*Jägermeister Music Tour

References

External links

* [http://www.jagermeister.com Official website] in English
* [http://www.jaegermeister.de Official website] in German
* [http://www.jager.com Official website] for the United States
* [http://www.jagermusic.com Jägermeister Music Program]
* [http://www.boozebasher.com/2008-01-09/liqueurs/liquor-review-jagermeister/ Review of Jägermeister]