Food - Drink

Cointreau: The Ultimate Bottle Guide

By LAUREN WICKS

Candy Makers

The house of Cointreau was first established in 1849 when Adolphe Cointreau was looking to expand his family's business. Adolphe was a confectioner and felt that his family's experience with sweet, fruity treats would translate well to liqueurs. In 1857, the Cointreaus decided to home in on orange liqueur, and the rest is history.

Original Triple-Sec

Cointreau's fame spread around the world, and in order to have a global appeal, the family tamped down the sweetness by adding a mix of sweet and bitter orange peels. By calling it a triple sec or triple-dry liqueur, they hoped to describe a drink that was triple-concentrated with orange flavor and yet relatively dry.

Cocktail Revolution

This clear orange liqueur in a square bottle became a legendary aspect of craft cocktail culture at the turn of the 20th century, and the liqueur quickly appeared as an ingredient in many now-iconic cocktail recipes, including the White Lady, Sidecar, Margarita, and Cosmopolitan.

An Icon Of Glamor

While Cointreau earned its global presence through its innovative advertising campaigns and bottle design, its best press was its inclusion on the shelves of innovative bars. It has remained an icon of opulence, most notably through the brand's involvement with the Cannes Film Festival and other premier events around the world.

How It's Made

Cointreau is still produced at the same distillery Adolphe dreamed up more than 170 years ago, which means every bottle purchased around the world was made in the same room. Their practice may be old, but the process is now state of the art, as the distillery underwent a major renovation in 2020 and is now reopened to tourists.

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