Orange Liquor Throwdown Challenge - Tiki Drinks and Food

D DemeraraDrinker Member Kansas City Joined: Mar 28, 2007 Posts: 92	D DemeraraDrinker Posted posted on Thu, Apr 5, 2007 2:13 PM On 2007-04-05 13:58, TikiJosh wrote: Well, true. You can call Orange Curacao triple sec, but is it "incorrect" to call Cointreau a type of triple sec? Or is it in a class all it's own? Anyway, I mixed up a Mai Tai last night with Cointreau instead of the triple sec I've been using the last few weeks. The taste was almost the same, but with the Cointreau instead of cheap DeKuyper triple sec, I noticed a little more alcohol taste/burn. I assume that Cointreau has more alcohol in it than regular old triple sec, but I didn't check the bottles to verify that. Aside from the extra alcohol (not a bad thing), I thought that the overall drink tasted a little less "chemically-enhanced". It's sort of like the difference between using a fresh squeezed lime juice and the stuff in a bottle. The Cointreau definitely added a cleaner orange flavor to the Mai Tai. I forget how much Cointreau costs, but I'd imagine that it's a little too expensive to use everyday. Cointreau is 80 proof. Normal Triple Sec can vary from 30 to 60 or so proof. I have noticed Cointreau has a cleaner orange taste than most other products. It costs more (about $35 a liter), but it is worth it for the clean and fresh taste, especially in cocktails with only 1-2 other clean tasting ingredients. I can't remember if this has been covered in the post or not, but Vic might have used Orange Curacao because it has a slightly bitter flavor from the Larahas orange peels it is made from. These oranges are quite bitter and are native to the island of Curacao. So Curacao is a little different than Triple Sec or Cointreau in this regard. Vic might have thought the bitterness countered or complemented some of the other ingredients in the drink (maybe the Orgeat)...? I'm not sure if the Bols Orange Curacao in my collection really is made this way, or if it has succumbed to "modern" production methods...but that's what I use in my Mai Tais. I would love to try Marie Brizard's version, but I haven't had the chance yet.

On 2007-04-05 13:58, TikiJosh wrote:
Well, true. You can call Orange Curacao triple sec, but is it "incorrect" to call Cointreau a type of triple sec? Or is it in a class all it's own?
Anyway, I mixed up a Mai Tai last night with Cointreau instead of the triple sec I've been using the last few weeks. The taste was almost the same, but with the Cointreau instead of cheap DeKuyper triple sec, I noticed a little more alcohol taste/burn. I assume that Cointreau has more alcohol in it than regular old triple sec, but I didn't check the bottles to verify that.
Aside from the extra alcohol (not a bad thing), I thought that the overall drink tasted a little less "chemically-enhanced". It's sort of like the difference between using a fresh squeezed lime juice and the stuff in a bottle. The Cointreau definitely added a cleaner orange flavor to the Mai Tai. I forget how much Cointreau costs, but I'd imagine that it's a little too expensive to use everyday.

Cointreau is 80 proof. Normal Triple Sec can vary from 30 to 60 or so proof.

I have noticed Cointreau has a cleaner orange taste than most other products. It costs more (about $35 a liter), but it is worth it for the clean and fresh taste, especially in cocktails with only 1-2 other clean tasting ingredients.

I can't remember if this has been covered in the post or not, but Vic might have used Orange Curacao because it has a slightly bitter flavor from the Larahas orange peels it is made from. These oranges are quite bitter and are native to the island of Curacao. So Curacao is a little different than Triple Sec or Cointreau in this regard. Vic might have thought the bitterness countered or complemented some of the other ingredients in the drink (maybe the Orgeat)...?

I'm not sure if the Bols Orange Curacao in my collection really is made this way, or if it has succumbed to "modern" production methods...but that's what I use in my Mai Tais. I would love to try Marie Brizard's version, but I haven't had the chance yet.

Post #297132 by DemeraraDrinker on Thu, Apr 5, 2007 2:13 PM