Cointreau (, , ) is a brand of orange-flavoured

triple sec Triple sec is an orange-flavoured liqueur that originated in France. It usually contains 20–40% alcohol by volume. Triple sec is rarely consumed neat, but is used in preparing many mixed drinks such as margaritas, cosmopolitans, sidecars, L ...

liqueur produced in

Saint-Barthélemy-d'Anjou Saint-Barthélemy-d'Anjou (, literally ''Saint-Barthélemy of Anjou'') is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France. It is known as the place where Cointreau orange liqueur is produced. Cointreau was invented and previously pr ...

, France. It is consumed as an

apéritif and digestif Apéritifs (; ) and digestifs () are drinks, typically alcoholic, that are normally served before (''apéritif'') or after (''digestif'') a meal. Apéritif An apéritif is an alcoholic beverage usually served before a meal to stimulate the appe ...

, and is a component of several well-known

cocktail A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink. Most commonly, cocktails are either a combination of spirits, or one or more spirits mixed with other ingredients such as tonic water, fruit juice, flavored syrup, or cream. Cocktails vary widely across ...

s. It was originally called Curaçao Blanco Triple Sec. Despite the orange bottle, Cointreau is colourless.

Production

Cointreau Distillery was set up in 1849 by Adolphe Cointreau, a

confectioner Confectionery is the art of making confections, which are food items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates. Exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confectionery is divided into two broad and somewhat overlapping categorie ...

, and his brother Edouard-Jean Cointreau. Their first success was with the cherry liqueur

Guignolet Guignolet () is a French wild cherry liqueur. It is widely available in France, including at supermarkets such as ''Casino'' and others, but is not widely available internationally. A leading producer is the company Giffard in Angers, France, t ...

, but they also found success when they blended sweet and bitter orange peels and pure alcohol from

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and which is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together wi ...

s. The first bottles of Cointreau were sold in 1875. An estimated 13 million bottles are sold each year, in more than 150 countries. Ninety percent of production is exported. Cointreau & Cie SA was family-owned until 1990, when it merged with

Rémy Martin Rémy Martin () is a French firm that primarily produces and sells cognac. Founded in 1724 and based in the commune of Cognac, it is among the oldest cognac producers still in existence. and one of the "big four" cognac houses (along with Henne ...

to form

Rémy Cointreau Rémy Cointreau is a French, family-owned business group whose origins date back to 1724. The group has an international portfolio of spirits (cognac, liqueurs and spirits): Rémy Martin and Louis XIII cognacs, Cointreau liqueur, METAXA Greek spi ...

, now a publicly traded company. The production methods and recipe are a

family secret A family secret is a secret kept within a family. Most families have secrets, but the kind and importance vary. Family secrets can be shared by the whole family, by some family members or kept by an individual member of the family. The secret can r ...

, but tours of the facility are open to the public. Photography is restricted in many areas to protect the production process from being copied.

Cocktails

In addition to being consumed

neat Neat may refer to: * Neat (bartending), a single, unmixed liquor served in a rocks glass * Neat, an old term for horned oxen * Neat Records, a British record label * Neuroevolution of augmenting topologies (NEAT), a genetic algorithm (GA) for t ...

(or often on

ice Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaq ...

), Cointreau is used in many popular

s. The official IBA recipes for the

margarita A margarita is a cocktail consisting of Tequila, triple sec, and lime juice often served with salt on the rim of the glass. The drink is served shaken with ice (on the rocks), blended with ice (frozen margarita), or without ice (straight up). T ...

, Corpse Reviver #2, and the

cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

include Cointreau. When mixed with water, Cointreau exhibits the

Ouzo effect The ouzo effect (also louche effect and spontaneous emulsification) is a milky ('' louche'') oil-in-water emulsion that is formed when water is added to ouzo and other anise-flavored liqueurs and spirits, such as pastis, rakı, arak, sambuca a ...

Publicity

In the 1980s,

Avirex Avirex is an American company that designs, manufactures and markets clothing lines. It was founded by Jeff Clyman in 1975 as a brand for military apparel. Contrary to popular belief, Avirex was not a U.S. military supplier during World War I ...

, now Cockpit USA, issued an

A-2 A2, A02, A002, A², A.II or A-2 may refer to: Biology and medicine * British NVC community A2 (Lemna minor community), a plant community * A2, the second anal vein in the Comstock-Needham system of insect wing segment naming Genes and proteins * ...

limited-edition leather flight jacket featuring Cointreau Original Margarita

nose art Nose art is a decorative painting or design on the fuselage of an aircraft, usually on the front fuselage. While begun for practical reasons of identifying friendly units, the practice evolved to express the individuality often constrained by ...

on the back of the jacket. In early 2008,

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

entertainer

Dita Von Teese Heather Renée Sweet (born September 28, 1972), known professionally as Dita Von Teese, is an American vedette, burlesque dancer, model, and businesswoman. She is credited with re-popularizing burlesque performance, earning the moniker "Queen ...

became the new face of Cointreau's "Be Cointreauversial" advertising and marketing campaign, a campaign created in 2003 by the New York advertising agency

KraftWorks KraftWorks is an advertising agency located in New York City. KraftWorks was founded by Neil Kraft in 2000 after leaving the agency Frierson Mee & Kraft.

.Kraftworks NYC

References

External links

* {{official website, https://www.cointreau.com/
Rémy Cointreau
Products introduced in 1875 French liqueurs Orange liqueurs

Production

Cocktails

Publicity

See also

References

External links