Wine Labs · Market intelligence
Elixir d'Anvers: History, Production and Prices in 2026
Elixir d'Anvers, the Antwerp herbal liqueur since 1863: how the producer makes it and what a bottle costs at 91 sellers in 14 countries.
Elixir d'Anvers is a Belgian herbal liqueur made in Antwerp by the F.X. de Beukelaer distillery. The brand dates it precisely: at 2 a.m. on March 19, 1863, François-Xavier de Beukelaer finished the recipe at Paardenmarkt in Antwerp (Elixir d'Anvers). It is bottled at 36.9% ABV.
This guide sets out what the producer publishes about the liqueur and what it costs today. The prices come from Wine Labs data taken on November 4, 2026: 91 sellers in 14 countries with a live offer for a standard 70 cl bottle. Elixir d'Anvers is a spirit, not a wine, so our coverage is thinner than for wine, and we say where the samples are small.
Elixir d'Anvers at a glance
| Type | Herbal liqueur |
| Producer | F.X. de Beukelaer distillery, Haantjeslei, Antwerp |
| Owner | Nolet de Brauwere family |
| Recipe completed | March 19, 1863 |
| Botanicals | 32 herbs, spices, roots and citrus peels |
| Alcohol | 36.9% ABV |
| Bottle sizes | 150 cl, 100 cl, 70 cl, 50 cl, 20 cl and 3 cl |
| Live retail median, 70 cl | $31 across 91 sellers |
Sources: Elixir d'Anvers and Elixir d'Anvers, product page. Prices: Wine Labs.
History
The brand's timeline names François-Xavier de Beukelaer as the founder. The brand describes him both as a pharmacist and as a wine merchant trained in medicine and pharmacy. He completed the recipe at Paardenmarkt in Antwerp in 1863. In 1894 the company moved to larger premises at Haantjeslei, designed by the architect Jules Hofman, and its address is still Haantjeslei 132. The distillery is now owned by the Nolet de Brauwere family (Elixir d'Anvers).
In a 2022 interview, Carl-Ivan Nolet de Brauwere said he runs the company with his father, Ivan. He also said the family has distilled for more than 330 years (About-Drinks, September 2022).
How it is made
The producer describes four stages (Elixir d'Anvers, product page):
- Maceration and distillation. The botanicals are macerated and slowly distilled in a copper pot still.
- Preparation. The distillate is combined with alcohol, soft water and sugar.
- Ageing. The liqueur rests in old oak casks.
- Bottling. The whole process takes about five months.
The brand gives the recipe as 32 botanicals. In the 2022 interview, the company said the distilled herbal base comes off the still at about 80% alcohol. It also said the liquid matures in small oak barrels and then in a large one before filtering and bottling, after about six months (About-Drinks).
The brand's site describes a family tradition: children were once given a sugar cube with a few drops of the liqueur. It also lists cocktails and dishes that use Elixir d'Anvers (Elixir d'Anvers, product page).
What it costs today
Wine Labs found live offers at 91 sellers for the standard bottle (70 cl in the listings we checked). We took one price per seller. The median is $31, and the middle half runs from $26 to $52.
| Format | Sellers | 25th percentile | Median | 75th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard bottle (70 cl) | 91 | $26 | $31 | $52 |
| 1 litre | 13 | $22 | $27 | $29 |
| 50 cl | 10 | $27 | $30 | $32 |
The price depends mostly on the country. Most sellers are in the Netherlands and Belgium, where the liqueur is widely stocked:
Live offers, November 4, 2026. One price per seller. Japan and France rest on five sellers each.
| Country | Median | Sellers |
|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | $28 | 26 sellers |
| Belgium | $36 | 22 sellers |
| United States | $65 | 19 sellers |
| Japan | $26 | 5 sellers |
| France | $33 | 5 sellers |
| Country | Sellers, 70 cl | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 26 | $28 |
| Belgium | 22 | $36 |
| United States | 19 | $65 |
| Japan | 5 | $26 |
| France | 5 | $33 |
The US median is about twice the Dutch and Belgian medians. That fits an imported spirit, which pays shipping, import duty and distributor margins. The Japanese and French figures rest on five sellers each, so treat them as indications only. Some retail prices include sales tax or VAT and others do not.
A few listings are well above these ranges: a bottle described as from the 1950s at about $186, and a US listing at about $204. Old bottles and collector listings are a separate market from current stock. They are included in the counts above, but they barely move the median.
Auction appearances
Elixir d'Anvers rarely goes to auction. Wine Labs holds 13 lots since 2010, and six of them have a recorded price. Most recent lots were older bottlings: Whisky.Auction sold bottles described as from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s between 2022 and 2024. Their prices ranged from about $31 to $67 per 750 ml equivalent, including the buyer's premium. Six results are too few for a market price. They show only that older bottles do change hands, in the same range as current retail prices.
Notes for buyers and merchants
- Check the size. The liqueur comes in six bottle sizes, from 3 cl to 150 cl. Compare prices per litre, or within one size.
- Separate old bottlings. Bottles from earlier decades sell as collectibles. They are not part of the current-stock price.
- Expect country gaps. In our data, retail prices in the United States are about twice those in the Benelux.
Search current offers in Wine Labs search, or see how we track prices across channels in Wine Labs fine wine market data.
Data methodology: Wine Labs data, snapshot November 4, 2026, for "Elixir d'Anvers Liqueur, Belgium". Retail uses live offers from online merchants and shops. We take one median price per seller per format and count each chain once per country. Mini-bottle, half-bottle and magnum listings are excluded because there are too few of them and their format labels are unreliable. Auction figures use lots with a recorded realised price, buyer's premium included and normalised to a 750 ml equivalent. All prices are in US dollars. Producer facts come from the Elixir d'Anvers websites and a 2022 About-Drinks interview, as linked.