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Liquor Review: Cointreau

Published on November 15th, 2008 in Liqueurs by Hunter

Cointreau     Though not nearly as exciting to the seasoned alcoholic as a tasty whiskey or tequila may be, liqueurs do have their place in the wonderful world of booze. They often add the right amount of sweetness to mixed drinks, while providing a little boost in alcohol content. We here at BoozeBasher are all about anything that helps drinks contain more happy juice. After being satisfied by Grand Mariner, we thought Cointreau orange liqueur would be another interesting spirit to put to the test.

    I’ve always had a tough time with the pronunciation of Cointreau (pronounced [kwan'-tro]). I would love to claim that my ignorance is unique, but I have heard Cointreau pronounced at least five different ways while drowning assorted life pains at local watering holes. I myself must have used at least three of those pronunciations, but now that you know the correct way to request this spirit, you can leave ignorant rumblings to the professional buffoons such as myself (buffoon local #4352). Be sure to pronounce it correctly as you read so that it can still roll off the tongue when you are pathetically drunk.

    Cointreau is a brand of triple sec liqueur produced in a suburb of Angers, France since 1875. The Cointreau Distillery was founded in 1849 by a confectioner name Adolphe Cointreau and his brother, Edouard-Jean. Even though tours of the distillery are open to the public, the production methods are still a family secret and no photos are allowed during tours. The bitter oranges used in its creation come from all over the world.  They boast that mixture of bitter orange peels and sweet oranges make a delicious clear spirit. Burlesque entertainer Dita Von Teese has jumped onboard for Cointreau’s new “Be Cointreauversial” advertising campaign. Sex sells. I’m sure we could boost our traffic if we had pictures of really attractive and perhaps scantily-clad ladies holding bottles of their favorite booze. We here at BoozeBasher are obviously above such tactics, but feel free to send such pictures here to perhaps change our mind.

    Many people sip on Cointreau as an apéritif or digestif, so you might expect the taste over ice to be sweet and pleasant. Up front, it’s a little harsh for a liqueur. There is a bit of a burn, and the bitter orange flavor is pretty intense. It does provide a decent sweet finish and aftertaste, but this is one I would much prefer to drink in a mixed drink or shooter. I don’t think it would doo much for my appetite. Mixed with Sprite, Cointreau yields a very pleasant taste. It gives the drink a delicious citrus taste that isn’t too overpowering. The mixture makes the Sprite taste more carbonated. It’s similar to drinking mandarin vodka with sprite, but the taste is a bit sweeter and less harsh. It would be a good drink for girly men or people who don’t like the taste of alcohol. I rather enjoy one every now and then. That hardly makes me a girly man though, right? You might want to check out our margarita recipe article to get some drink making ideas.

Although Cointreau is a liqueur, it is in fact 80-proof. Unfortunately, the drunk wasn’t too awesome at quelling the life pains. Cointreau got me a quick buzz, but things never really progressed past that point. After consuming several drinks, Cointreau sits pretty heavy on the stomach. It made me feel rather bloated and really prevented me from my alcoholic indulgence that dominates my weekend activities. Feeling bloated is never good for my confidence. My lips became covered in stickiness that also found its way to my fingers. I would normally be tempted to keep such information to myself, but since I was relatively sober the whole night, I will attribute it to the sticky liqueur. The buzz was nice, but the bloated and blah feeling I got from drinking a few Cointreau drinks really kept me from getting to that happy drunken place. Since Cointreau didn’t get me drunk, there really was no hangover the next day. I suppose that was a little surprising from a liqueur, but it seems silly to be too happy about it since I didn’t get the drunk I wanted the night before.

At around $40, Cointreau will put a serious hurting on your pocket book. I can’t say that I would really pay that much for it on a regular basis. It’s tough to spend that kind of money on something that is going into a mixed drink or shooter. Hell, that’s a lot to spend on any liqueur. However, if a certain special lady wants to drink Cointreau, you should go buy it! Anything that could possibly make you look better to a special someone (or the flavor of the evening) is worth it’s weight in gold…or some other assorted cliché.

Sipability – 6.0

Mixability – 7.5

Drunkability – 6.0

Hangover-ability – 8.5

Bang for the Buck - 4.0

Overall - 7.0