Riga Black Balsam

The traditional recipe was created in 1752 by Abraham Kunze, an apothecary living in Riga.[6] In 1762, Kunze published an advertisement for the balsam in the December 23rd issue of the Rigische Anzeigen newspaper, describing its purported healing properties and instructions for use and offering it in flasks, cruses and bottles of an unspecified volume sealed with wax with his initials (A.K.) pressed in them for a price of two state thalers for a shtof.[7]

According to a legend, Empress Catherine the Great was heading back to Russia and stopped in Riga for a few day respite. Shortly upon arrival, she fell very ill and Kunze was asked to step in after the empress's personal doctor proved helpless. The balsam's success in curing Catherine the Great provided it with popularity throughout Europe and Kunze with exclusive rights to produce the balsam for the next 50 years.[5]

Black Magic Bar in an 18th-century pharmacy on Kaļķu street in Old Riga

After the death of Abraham Kunze, his widowed wife Eva Sofia Kunze continued to produce and sell the balsam as Kunzensky balsam (Russian: Кунценский бальзам, German: Kunzer Balsam, Latvian: Kuncena balzams), while the ownership and inheritance of rights to the balsam came under an increasing dispute. In 1766, a glazier from Riga, Peteris Adams, claimed to be the actual inventor of the balsam, having supposedly invented it ten years before Kunze, who was accused of taking his formula, however Riga City Council rejected Adams' application, arguing that he had come forth with the allegations only after Abraham Kunze's death. In 1770 and 1774, Eva Kunze complained to the Governor-General of Riga about the counterfeit production of Kunze's balsam and requested that others are prohibited from producing it, but her request was denied.[8]

In 1774, "to increase the health of society" Riga authorities granted the production rights of Kuzensky Balsam to carpenter Martin Roslau who "had had the opportunity to learn the composition of the said balsam from Abraham Kunze". Martin Roslau produced it until his death in 1783, after which it was continued by his only daughter Maria Jadwiga and a year later also by her new husband Cristop Strizky.[8]

In 1789, Semyon Leluchin, a merchant from Vyazma, obtained a patent for the balsam's production and sales. It is unknown when or how he acquired the recipe, but Leluchin was the one that transformed Kunze's 16 ABV white-coloured medicinal drink into a stronger black balsam intended for general consumption.[9] Because of that, the sales of the balsam rose sharply and in some cities of the Russian Empire it was started to be consumed as a strong vodka.[10] In 1804, the factory of Yegor Leluchin, the son and heir of Semyon Leluchin, employed six workers and one apprentice producing 9,200 shtofs of the balsam, of which 4,200 were sold abroad, while the remaining 5,000 were stored for the next year.[11]

In the 19th century, Riga Black Balsam had become a national drink and by the mid-19th century was already produced by factories in Riga, Liepāja, Bauska, Talsi and Ventspils. In either 1845 or 1847, Wolfschmidt, the biggest and best-known producer of Riga Black Balsam in the 19th century, began its operations. It continued the production of Riga Black Balsam even after Latvia declared its independence in 1918.[12]

Riga Black Balsam manufacturing plant in 160 Aleksandra Čaka street

The original recipe was lost in 1939 after its last keepers, the Schrader brothers, repatriated to Germany.[13] The recipe was carefully restored in 1950 through a collective effort of the factory's employees, with the technologist Maiga Podračniece playing an essential role in the restoration,[5] for which she was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labour.[13] In 1969, a joint team of specialists from Latvijas Keramika and Riga Polytechnical Institute designed the very first ceramic bottles for the balsam.[14]

During the Latvian SSR there was a deficit of Riga Black Balsam, which became a valuable souvenir and gift that was sometimes even regifted.[15] In the 1970s, a 300-gram bottle of the 45-proof Riga Black Balsam with an iron stopper cost 9 Rbls 10 kop "inclusive of the cost of the container", while a similar bottle with a cork stopper sealed with wax cost 10 Rbls 90  kop.[16]

In 2019, a new version of Riga Black Balsam was released mixing the original balsam extract with Arabica coffee bean and cinnamon extract.[17][18] 2020 saw the launch of two limited edition versions – Riga Black Balsam XO blended with an 8 year old French brandy,[19] and Riga Black Balsam Chocolate & Mint.[20]