According to EU spirits legislation, a liqueur (from the Latin liquor for "liquid") is a mostly viscous spirit obtained by flavouring ethanol or a distillate of agricultural origin or spirits. The alcohol content must be at least 15% to 40% and the sugar content labelled as invert sugar must be at least 100 g/l (exceptions are gentian liqueur with 80 g/l and cherry liqueur with 70 g/l).

Liqueurs are often served with dessert at the end of a meal, which is why they are categorised as dessert wines. They are also popular as a digestif to aid digestion. In dry wines, liqueur-like notes are generally not intended and are considered negative, with the exception of liqueur wines.
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