Alchermes, a red liqueur coloured by inclusion of the insect Kermes vermilio
Large part of the mountain area, including the Selakano valley, are forested with pines (Pinus brutia), Kermes oaks (Quercus coccifera), cypresses (Cupressus sempervirens), Holm Oaks (Quercus ilex) and Cretan Maples (Acer sempervirens).
It could be obtained from the domestically harvested Polish cochineal, although imported alternatives were also available: kermes from the Mediterranean Basin (hence karmazyn, the Polish name of the color) and Mexican cochineal after the discovery of the New World.
A son of Marc Louis de Trogoff de Kerlessy and Jeanne Eléonore Bourel de Kermès, de Kerlessy joined the Ancien Regime French fleet as a volunteer in 1764 and fought in the 1765 campaign against the Salétins.
Kermes has performed at many important theatres and concert halls internationally, including the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, the Staatsoper Stuttgart, the Bonn Opera House, the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden.