Region & History

In the northwest of the canton of Jura, in the Ajoie around Porrentruy, grows a small red plum that's barely known outside the region. From it comes Damassine, a plum brandy protected since 2010 as Damassine AOP. AOP stands for "appellation d'origine protégée," known in English as a protected designation of origin, or PDO.

As for where the name comes from, the story often told in Jura goes like this: Crusaders supposedly brought the plum back from Damascus. It's a nice legend, but there's no evidence for it. The application to protect the name was filed by fruit growers from the Ajoie together with the association Fruits du Jura.

The federal specifications require that everything happen within the canton of Jura. The plum must grow there, and storage, fermentation, distillation and bottling may likewise take place only there. Any brandy made from this plum that carries a Jura place or district name must comply. The canton itself is young: Jura has only been its own canton since 1979, having previously belonged to Bern.

Distilling in Switzerland takes place under state supervision. Taxation is managed by the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security, formerly the Swiss Alcohol Board. Farmers with their own still may distill fruit they've grown themselves; those without one have it distilled for a fee. Distilling without a permit is prohibited.

In Porrentruy, the museum Ô Vergers d'Ajoie shows how fruit becomes brandy, syrup and jam. In 2022 it also hosted the first Fête de la Damassine AOP, a festival celebrating the fruit, during which producers crowned a king or queen of Damassine.