Cointreau

Colour

Clear and colourless.

Nose

Fresh orange zest with a lightly floral edge and a touch of subtle spice.

Palate

Drier than many expect, showing juicy citrus, a gentle peel bitterness, and a clean, refined sweetness.

Finish

Medium length, fresh and tidy, with lingering orange and a small bitter snap.

Cointreau is a historic French orange liqueur from Angers. The house was founded in 1849 by Adolphe Cointreau, a confectioner who used his knowledge of fruit to begin producing liqueurs. His brother Édouard-Jean later joined the business and together they expanded the distillery. Orange liqueur first appeared in the house recipe books in 1857, but the major breakthrough came with the next generation.

Édouard Cointreau devoted his attention to orange and, after years of experimentation, created the clear liqueur that became the foundation of Cointreau in 1885. He combined fresh and dried peels from both sweet and bitter oranges, producing a more concentrated and less sweet style than many liqueurs of the period. That same year, both the Cointreau name and its distinctive square bottle were officially registered.

Cointreau is still produced in Angers and has become a classic ingredient in cocktails such as the Margarita, Cosmopolitan and Sidecar. Its combination of orange peel, careful distillation and balanced sweetness has made Cointreau one of the world’s best known orange liqueurs.