Cointreau

Cointreau is a French triple sec liqueur based on sweet and bitter oranges. The history of this liqueur has been going on for more than 150 years. The Cointreau distillery was founded in 1849 by confectioners Adolphe Cointreau and his brother Edouard-Jean Cointreau. Their first successful product was the cherry liqueur Guignolet. But really successful can be considered the idea of the son of Edouard-Jean (also Edouard) to mix sweet and bitter orange peels with pure alcohol from sugar beet. The first bottles of such a drink went on sale in 1875. To protect Cointreau from numerous fakes, in 1885 Edward registered a patent for the name and shape of the bottle. Over time, the drink has gained popularity in more than a hundred countries around the world. The main component of the drink is the zest of bitter and sweet oranges, delivered from the Antilles, Brazil, Spain and Southern France. The zest is infused with neutral alcohol, obtained by distilling grain and beet products. The resulting infusion is distilled twice in stills. After that, spring water and sugar syrup are added to the distillate. More detailed composition of the drink and production technology are a secret of the Cointreau family. Cointreau is consumed pure or as an ingredient for cocktails or culinary products.