The word liqueur is derived from the Latin liquefacere, meaning “to make liquid.” Liqueurs were probably first produced commercially by medieval monks and alchemists. They have been called balms, crèmes, elixirs, and oils and have been used over the centuries as medicines and tonics, love potions, and aphrodisiacs. 

Liqueur, flavoured and sweetened distilled liquor, with alcohol content ranging from 24 percent to 60 percent by volume (48–120 U.S. proof). Liqueurs are produced by combining a base spirit, usually brandy, with fruits or herbs and are sweetened by the addition of a sugar syrup composing more than 2 ¹/₂ percent of the total beverage by volume.