Verbena

We often talk about Verbena officinalis, it was introduced in France at the end of the 18th century.

Verbena officinalis was one of the sacred plants of Gaul. Its name comes from the Celtic word "ferfaen" meaning "sacred branch", "magic wand" or "witchcraft and enchantment herb". Before the sacrifices, it is said that the Druids used Verbena to clean the altars. The bards used them to sing, the plant having visibly beneficial virtues on the voice, and to make wreaths that they wore on their heads on special occasions or when they had committed memorable acts. The ovates used Verbena to chase away evil spirits. To do this, they sprayed their house with lustral water in which they dipped a branch of Verbena. As they attributed divinatory properties to it, they also drank its infusion before predicting the future or casting spells.

In short, Verbena represented for them "the grass of all ills", "the grass of wonder" or "erbo de la merbelo" as we can currently hear in Provence. The Roman pharmacopoeia was enriched by this Gallic panacea. It is said that they used it to make love filters! Its aromatic and sweetly lemony scent was considered seductive and capable of bewitching the heart of the desired person.

The inhabitants of Velay were passionate about fragrant Verbena, to the point of making it their emblem. Indeed, Verbena is of great importance to us Altiligerians today. Many inhabitants of the Haute-Loire region cultivate the plant and then use it to make their own infusions and Verbena liqueurs. It is in Le Puy-en-Velay, the city in which the company Pagès has been established for 160 years now, that they started to distil Verbena alcohol to sell it. This drink was an immediate success and still represents one of the specificities of Haute-Loire today.