The Truth About the Fête du Citron — Spectacle, Symbol, and the Real Menton Lemon

The question everyone asks (eventually)

You’re standing in the Biovès Gardens, looking at a citrus sculpture the size of a building. Thousands of lemons, perfectly placed, glowing like little suns. Then you hear it:

“Wait… are these actually Menton lemons?”

It’s a fair question. And the answer—surprisingly—is what makes the Menton lemon story more powerful, not less.

What the festival really celebrates

The Fête du Citron is Menton’s signature winter spectacle: themed parades, enormous citrus-covered floats, and monumental installations that turn the town into a temporary outdoor museum made of fruit. The festival became officially known as the Fête du Citron in 1934 and has grown into a major annual event.

But underneath the spectacle, it’s not really about “lots of lemons.”

It’s about Menton’s identity—a place where citrus is culture.

So… are the lemons on the floats from Menton?

Often, not all of them.

A significant amount of citrus used for the festival’s giant displays is typically imported, because the real Menton lemon is too scarce and too valuable to use at decoration-scale.

That’s not a contradiction. It’s the proof.

Why imported fruit is actually part of the truth

To build sculptures and floats at this scale, you need an ocean of citrus. But the Menton lemon is produced in limited quantities, tied to a small growing area and increasingly shaped by real-world constraints—land pressure, climate stress, and the fact that the fruit is prized as a specialty product.

So Menton does something smart:

  • It uses citrus as public art for the festival.

  • It protects the true Menton lemon for what it’s best at: flavor.

The festival is the symbol.
The Menton lemon is the ingredient.

Why that matters for Gin d’Azur

Gin lives on aroma. And citrus aroma lives in the peel.

The reputation of Citron de Menton centers on its fragrant, aromatic skin—the essential-oil character that shows up when you zest it, twist it, or express it over a drink.

So when Gin d’Azur uses Menton lemons, it’s not chasing “lemon flavor.” It’s choosing:

  • bright top notes that hit immediately

  • clean, perfumed citrus lift that keeps botanicals crisp

  • honest scarcity—because you can only make what the harvest allows

That’s why the festival detail matters. If the town itself can’t afford to use the rare local fruit as decoration, then using it in a spirit is a deliberate choice—not a gimmick.

Next up: how to taste Menton lemon in a glass (and the simplest serve that makes it obvious).

CTA (end of post):
Try Gin d’Azur with premium tonic, lots of ice, and a big expressed strip of lemon zest. The zest oil is where Menton shows up first—like a flash of Riviera sunlight.

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