There are some things in life that are definitely more enjoyable with a friend or two.  Ever trying playing on one of those playground seesaws by yourself?  No fun at all.  How about a rousing game of football?  Yeah, you can run up the score and rock out with your best in-zone dances without embarrassment, but you don’t get to see that satisfying humiliated look of defeat on your opponent’s face.  Grand Marnier is one of those things that you could enjoy by itself, but is so much better when you let it socialize with a few high alcohol content friends.

    The beverage you know today as Grand Marnier did not always carry that name.  When Louis Alexandre Marnier-Lapostolle first invented the liqueur in 1880, he named it Curacao Marnier.  The name it carries today was given to it by Cesar Ritz when he first tasted his friend Louis Alexandre’s creation.  Obviously, he was a big fan.  Yes, if you are wondering, Cesar Ritz is that Ritz.  A number of years later Cesar was assisted by Louis Alexandre in procuring a site for his hotel, the Ritz.  So if you have ever have the pleasure of staying a night in the aforementioned hotel, pour a glass of Grand Marnier, and toast its creator because without him the hotel would probably not exist.

    Grand Marnier is a combination of eaux-de-vie that is created from grapes grown in distinguished regions of Cognac, France and the essence of Citrus Bigardia oranges.  To extract the essence of the orange, only the peels are steeped in netrual spirits until just the right amount of flavor has transferred over.  The Cognac, which has been aged for up to 5 years, and the distilled essence of Citrus Bigaradia are then combined using a 150-year-old secret recipe and placed into oak casks for another six to eight months of aging.  Once bottled, the distinctive red ribbon is hand-tied and sealed before being shipped to your favorite liquor store.  This may seem like a lot of effort, but it is well worth it and explains the $46 price tag.

    When sipped on the rocks, Grand Marnier has an obviously orange citrus flavor, but it comes along with a bold, sweet, almost toffee flavor added by the cognac.  It flirts with being too sweet but goes down extremely smooth with only a little alcohol burn.  It also makes for a decent shot when served up chilled.  However, as much fun as it is to enjoy by itself, Grand Marnier really excels when you add a few friends to the mix…like Tequila!  Use it to replace triple sec in a margarita, and an average drink suddenly turns into an amazing one.  We also gave the Grand Tropical cocktail from their website a shot, and it turned out to be Caribbean paradise in a glass.  At 80-proof, Grand Marnier has a little more punch than most orange liqueurs and, when consumed straight, will only get you lightly-toasted.  Unfortunately, due to the high sugar content of this liqueur, you will be reminded of your drinking experience the next morning.  Surprisingly though, it is not as bad as a lot of other liqueurs and is definitely a small price to pay to enjoy this fine beverage.

    So in essence, Grand Marnier is just like naked twister.  You could play by yourself, but it is just more fun with friends, friends of the opposite sex of course.  It is a little pricey but well worth it because I have not found another orange-flavored liqueur that can match its bold and complex flavor.  So I say pick yourself up a bottle, invite some friends over, spin the dial, and reach for that fun little colored circle.

 Sipability - 6.5

Mixability - 9.0

Drunkability - 6.5

Hangover-ability - 7.0

Bang for the Buck - 4.0

Overall - 7.5 

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     You know you’ve seen the bottle a thousand times but were too afraid to buy it.  Well, have no fear!  The crew here at BoozeBasher are always up for trying new things once, twice, well…until we can remember what actually happened.  Now we are branching out to bring you that radioactive yellow-colored liqueur review that you’ve been craving.  Not only does Galliano have an eye-catching color, but it also comes in a very distinct-looking bottle.  It’s tall and slender with flat edges, very much like a Roman column.  It’s a fitting look for an Italian spirit. 

     Galliano is an herb liqueur made from a variety of herbs, spices, berries, and flowers.  Sources say it contains at least 30 different ones; that in no way rivals Jägermeister’s 56, but it’s still a lot!  The original recipe dates back to 1896, as stated on the bottle, from a brandy producer named Arturo Vaccari.  He named his creation after Maggiore Galliano, hero of the East African wars of the 19th century.  There is surprisingly little information available out there on this unique liqueur.

     When cracking open the seal and taking a sniff, you pick up right away on the anise, licorice, and alcohol smells.  If you back off a little, you will notice the sweet scents of berries and vanilla.  To tell the truth, I was not prepared for what was to follow.  The taste hits you up front with a sweet licorice flavor that lingers for a few seconds.  The taste dissipates nicely after a couple seconds into what can only be described as “ooooh!”  I think that was the same reaction from everyone who tried it.  It was surprising with its sweet, refreshing, candy-like finish.  Galliano really is like nothing I’ve ever tasted.  Hell, even the ladies loved it!

     We had a hard time trying to decide what to mix with this delicious liqueur, so we went with the old Sprite stand-by.  Wow!  Now that’s a tasty beverage.  The carbonation and citrus of the Sprite really add to the variety of licorice and berry flavors.  The mixer cuts down a little on the licorice flavor and leaves you with a fantastically refreshing drink. 

     I had no problem putting down four of these in a hurry, and I doubt anyone will.  Galliano is the godfather of delicious. Plus, at a 30% alcohol content, this liqueur is no slouch, and it proceeded to give me a nice buzz.  I felt great, and the buzz carried through for a good while.  The only downside to the whole experience was the next morning.  I woke up with quite the headache.  I blame it on the high sugar content and the crazy combination of herbs and spices.

    Galliano rings up at $36 for a 750mL bottle.  While this might seem a little pricey for a liqueur, I guarantee it’s worth every penny.  If you’ve never tried Galliano, I highly recommend you and your nearest lady friend (or random girl/guy in a nearby bar) do so immediately.  You will really impress that lucky person with your sophisticated taste in imported liqueurs.  He or she will love the taste, and who knows, maybe you by assoication.  There is the chance your drinking buddy may just walk off into the sunset with the bottle, but that’s just something you are going to have to risk.

Sipability - 7.0

Mixability - 8.0

Drunkability - 6.5

Hangover-ability - 4.0

Bang for the Buck - 3.0

Chick appeal - 9.0

Overall - 6.5 

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     Agavero is an ultra-premium liqueur made from 100% blue agave añejo and reposado tequilas along with the essence of the Damiana flower.  It is delicious, unique, and a pleasure to drink.  However, you probably never need to waste your money buying a bottle.

     Agavero is produced at the las Camichines Distillery which resides in the Jalisco region of Mexico.  This area of Mexico includes the spirit whose name is known around the world, Tequila.  Yes, that’s Tequila, the one responsible for your loss of inhibitions, loss of clothing, table dancing, enumerable miserable mornings, and just a few bad decisions.  Don’t get scared off though, Agavero is a liqueur that is just made from tequila, so I think your inhibitions are safe with this one.  Following a 150-year-old recipe, both tequilas involved are made from 100% blue agave plants that are a minimum of 10 years old when harvested.  Wondering what the blue agave plant looks like?  Well the producers of this liqueur had you in mind when they designed the bottle to resemble the plants used in the production of Agavero.  Once the plants have been cooked, crushed, and twice distilled, the tequilas go into new French limousine oak barrels: the añejo for 18 months and the reposado for about a year.  After the tequila has spent its time maturing, it is hand-blended with the essence of the damiana flower to produce a drink that is unlike any other.

     Like straight tequila, the Damiana flower is also rumored to have an affect on your chances of getting some action or more politely stated, “stir up the emotions of individuals.”  During our testing I did not experience any stirring of my emotions.  However, my company was the Boozebasher staff, and they are not exactly my type.  I did experience a liqueur with a  sweet buttery flavor that still had that wonderful earthy taste that you expect out of a good blue agave tequila.  When I say sweet I mean spoonfuls of sugar washed down with syrup sweet, in-fact, it was a little too sweet for most of us to drink straight.  Mixing Agavero with Sprite© produced a tasty drink but still not anything I would seek out on a regular basis.  I also mixed up a batch of margaritas and added some additional Agavero, which made it noticeably sweeter but not really any better.  I have a number of recipes, all tasty, but none that have given me a reason to buy another bottle.  At 62-proof Agavero is more potent than most liqueurs, but don’t expect it to get you dancing on the table without the help of some other liquors.  Unfortunately, during the drunkability testing, the sugar content of this liqueur was so high that I ended up with a splitting headache and only a very slight buzz.  So beware when you are feeding this to your date to get her in the mood; she will probably be telling you the truth when she feeds you the “I have a headache” line.

     So here we have a liqueur that really does taste great, makes your date more interested in extra extra-curricular activities, and even has an educational bottle.  Yet somehow, all that is still not enough for it to find a permanent home in my liquor cabinet.  Maybe if you are a tequila fanatic and have a spare $41 to blow, it might be worth it to give Agavero a shot.  If you do, and you discover some delicious recipes that might change my mind, please let us know in the liqueurs section of our forum.

Sipability - 7.5 

Mixability - 7.5

Drunkability - 4.0

Hangover-ability - 3.5

Bang for the Buck - 3.0

Chick-appeal - 4.0

Overall - 5.5 

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