It’s just after 9pm in drizzly(下着毛毛雨的) Belleville, Paris. Too late for cocktails, too early for bedtime, but up the steep hill that straddles(横跨，跨越) the 19th and 20th arrondissements, digestif hour(餐后酒时间) is in sight.
巴黎贝尔维尔，细雨蒙蒙，刚过晚上9点。喝鸡尾酒太晚，睡觉又太早，但沿着横跨第19区和第20区的陡坡往上走，餐后酒时间就在眼前。
In the past few years, more and more Parisians have been reaching for a glass of Chartreuse(荨麻酒（一种法国草本利口酒）), an intensely green/yellow herbal liqueur with a folkloric(民间传说的) backstory involving Carthusian monks(加尔都西会修士), cholera(霍乱) and a recipe of omertà(缄默法则（黑手党保密守则）)-like secrecy.
过去几年，越来越多的巴黎人开始端起一杯荨麻酒——一种浓烈的绿黄色草本利口酒，背后有着涉及加尔都西会修士、霍乱和黑手党式保密配方的民间传说。
There are several types, of varying strengths, colours and prices, but none are that easy to find. At La Commune, a cultish(小众狂热的) leftwing hangout(常去的地方，聚会场所) in Belleville, where tequila shots cost less than €4, they finished the Chartreuse the night before. A few doors down at Les Triplettes de Belleville, I spot a third-full bottle of the cheaper yellow stuff sandwiched between the gins. Hugo Césard, the 19-year-old bartender, pours me a €7 shot, my third of the night. On first taste, it behaves like ouzo: sweet, fennelly(有茴香味的), cloyingly(甜得发腻地) thick. Then you hit the more complex notes, which are closer to an Alpine(阿尔卑斯山的) meadow. This one is a navy-strength(海军强度的（高酒精度）) 40% ABV(酒精度（按体积计）), while the green version is about 55%. In theAlps, you’re more likely to drink it in hot chocolate<strong>.</strong> To down it at room temperature is sacrilege(亵渎神圣), unless “you want to get very drunk”, says Césard. For me, alas, that ship has already sailed(时机已过，木已成舟).
荨麻酒有几种类型，浓度、颜色和价格各不相同，但都不太容易找到。在贝尔维尔的左翼小众聚会地 La Commune，龙舌兰 shots 不到4欧元，但前一晚他们的荨麻酒就卖完了。隔几家门面的 Les Triplettes de Belleville，我发现一瓶只剩三分之一的便宜黄荨麻酒夹在杜松子酒之间。19岁的调酒师雨果·塞萨尔给我倒了一杯7欧元的 shot，这是我今晚的第三杯。第一口尝起来像乌佐酒：甜、有茴香味、浓稠得发腻。接着你会感受到更复杂的风味，更接近高山草甸。这杯是海军强度40% ABV，而绿荨麻酒约55%。在阿尔卑斯山区，人们更常把它兑在热巧克力里喝。塞萨尔说，常温下一饮而尽是亵渎，除非“你想喝得烂醉”。对我来说，唉，那艘船已经开走了。