Is Cointreau a Triple-Sec ?

What is a triple sec?

Used in countless cocktails recipes, triple sec is a generic term for any orange-flavored spirit without any regulations around quality or production method. Since there is no worldwide official legal definition, nor specific quality requirements that must be met to carry the triple sec name, there can be significant differences between one triple sec and another in regards to quality¹.

Why is it called triple sec?

As there is no official legal definition, nor specific recipe or requirements to meet to carry this name¹, we certainly couldn’t answer for every triple sec: there are too many different sorts. Where we’re concerned, it’s the vision of our creator: In 1885 when Édouard Cointreau succeeds in creating what he had imagined—a crystalline liqueur with the ideal balance, and the result of a blend of dried and fresh sweet and bitter orange peels—he created a liquor that was three times more concentrated in flavor and less sweet than the liqueurs of the time.      

Did you know: when Édouard Cointreau created his liqueur in 1885, it was trademarked under the name "Cointreau Triple Sec", a term abandoned over time as Cointreau falls within the officially recognized category of liqueur spirits due to its quality indicators and manufacturing processes².

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Can I use Cointreau liqueur in recipes that call for a triple sec?

For perfectly balanced cocktails? Yes! And it would contribute to the quality of your cocktail! Why is that? Simply because Cointreau L’Unique is an orange liqueur with the perfect organoleptic balance. And as a liqueur, Cointreau is more than a triple sec. A triple sec is a generic name used for any orange-flavored spirit, with no official legal definition nor specific quality requirements1, while a liqueur, like Cointreau, actually goes a step further as there are certain legal production and quality requirements to fall into this category². The consequences? There are significant differences between one triple sec and another, which can translate into your cocktails (taste, freshness, sweetness, balance, etc,). By using Cointreau L’Unique in your cocktails rather than just a triple sec, you add the guarantee of the exceptional richness of 40+ aromas, quality sweet and bitter orange peels from the world’s finest terroirs, and 170 years+ of know-how. And the result is a perfectly balanced cocktail. As an orange liqueur with the perfect balance, Cointreau L’Unique guarantees a quality that comes from the rigorous creation process, which is entrusted to our Master Distiller Carole Quinton. Cointreau is a liqueur in a league of its own.

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Is today’s recipe the same as Édouard Cointreau’s original?

In 1870, Édouard Cointreau, son of Édouard-Jean, joined the family business. He had tasted several Dutch curaçaos and found them unrefined and overly sweet. He took over the helm of his family's entrepreneurial adventure, who was then specialized in candied fruits (strawberries, plums, cherries, etc.) and refined its focus on the orange, a fruit he felt held great potential. Inspired by the richness of this sun-drenched fruit, Édouard Cointreau traveled the world in search of the best varieties to enhance his liqueur. He quickly began distillation tests and would go on to create our future Cointreau liqueur in 1885.

Our goal is to maintain the exceptional organoleptic properties of Édouard’s original recipe. Today, Master Distiller Carole Quinton is the guardian of Cointreau’s precious orange-flavored liqueur. A feat of balance, authenticity, and olfactory richness, the recipe she holds has been both preserved and reinvented since Édouard created it in 1885.