The World of

Liqueurs
 Introduction
 Liqueurs are sweetened, flavoured and aromatic
alcoholic beverages.
 Flavourings include fruits, herbs, spices, flowers, roots,
seeds, plants, barks of trees and even cream.
 Evolved from the Latin word “liquifacere” meaning
“to dissolve or to melt”.
 Liqueurs have long resting periods to allow flavours to
marry well.
 Contd…
 Some Liqueurs are also descendants of herbal
medicines often prepared by monks. For eg.
Chartreuse or Benedictine
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
LIQUEURS AND CORDIALS
 The two words are used interchangeably in some
parts of the world.
 Liqueurs can have a number of flavourings while
cordials are prepared strictly with fruit pulp or
juices.
 All liqueurs are sweet with a dessert like flavour.
 Cordial: A sweet (when undiluted) non-
alcoholic fruit flavoured drink concentrate that
is diluted with water to taste. Most popular in
UK, Australia and New Zealand.
 Contd…
 A cordial may also refer to a candy which has
fruit filling and a chocolate covering. Eg. Cherry
cordial.
 Conclusion: A liqueur is an alcoholic cordial.
 Ways of Consumption
 Neat
 Poured over ice
 With coffee
 Mixed with cream or other mixers to create
cocktails
 Often served as dessert
 Used in cooking
 Categories of Liqueurs
 Fruit Liqueurs  Brandy Liqueurs
 Cream Liqueurs  Anise Liqueurs
 Coffee Liqueurs  Nut flavoured
 Chocolate Liqueurs  Herbal Liqueurs
 Schnapps Liqueurs  Crème Liqueurs
 Every Bartender’s Favourite
 Floating Liqueurs
A technique used by bartenders all over
the world to impress customers. Done by
pouring a measure of desired liqueur over
an inverted spoon or down a glass rod into
the glass to give a special effect. The use
of different colours gives a rainbow effect.
 An Interesting Property
Anise liqueurs have an interesting
property of turning cloudy from
translucent when diluted. The
reason being; Oil of anise remains in
the solution in the presence of high
concentration of alcohol but on
dilution crystallizes out of the
solution.
 Definition of a Liqueur:-
Liqueurs maybe defined as “sweetened, flavoured
and coloured spirits”. The name comes from the
latin “LIQUEFACERE” which means to
dissolve or to melt which is the maneer in which
many of them acquires the flavour. Most of the
liqueurs are centuries old,and are known to have
medicinal properties.
 Liqueurs Through the Ages
• Before the 15th century liqueurs were basically
made to disguise the poor quality spirits.
• By 15th century ,liqueur-making had progressed
into the public domain and specialist production
started in Italy and some parts of France.
• By 16th to 17th century , a series of attractive
and palatable drinks were launched under the
names Liqueurs, Cordial and Digestifs.
 BASIC USED SPIRITS
 Brandy
 Rum
 Whisky
 Neutral Spirits
Liqueurs are categorized on the
basis of their flavoring agents-
 Fruits
 Seeds and Plants

 Herbs and Spices

Under these categories there is endless

permutation of ingredients ands flavorings.
 Making Liqueurs
1.) Infusion-- Also known as the Maceration method, heat
is used and the soft fruits are steeped in the base spirits
for 6-9 months in large oak casks.The spirit extracts
aroma, colour and flavour from the fruit.
2.) Percolation-- Used for making Plant liqueurs, it works
on the principle of a coffee percolator. The filtered
product will be rested in vats to mature.It is then
artificially sweetened with sugar and coloured with
natural vegetable dye.
 Contd…
3.) Distillation-- The commonly used method of
distillation is the Pot Still Method. The flavoring
agents were macerated in brandy upto 48 hours
and afterwards the mash, with a supplement of
brandy, was put in a pot still. Heat is applied and
the resulting flavored distillate is sweetened and
artificially colored.
 There are thousands of Liqueurs of every
conceivable color, aroma and taste produced
world wide.
Some of the most popular ones are discussed in
the following slides.

P.S – One’s which are presently being used at the Lounge Bar at WelcomHotel
New Delhi will be marked by an ASTRIX(*).
WORLD OF LIQUEURS
 ADVOCAAT(PG.440)
NETHERLANDS
FLAVOURINGS-
o Oranges

o Lemon COCKTAIL--
SNOWBALL
o Cherries
(Lemonade and
o Vanilla Sherry)

DEFINE- CAN BE SIMPLY UNDERSTOOD AS THE INFUSION OF

GRAPE BRANDY, EGG YOLK AND SUGAR.
 Conti..
Brands— OH Content– 17.2 %
1. Warninks
SERVICE—
2. Bols
IT IS SERVED AS A DIGESTIF
3. Fockinks THAT IS UNMIXED.
 AMARETTO(PG.441)
ITALIAN
Flavorings- Cocktail– Godfather
1. Almonds (Scotch)
Brands-
2. Apricots
1. Disaronno

Service – 2. Casoni
Served Frappe. OH -28 %

Almonds extracts with apricot kernels are steeped in

brandy and sweetened by sugar syrup.
 ANIS
North Africa and France
Flavorings—
BRANDS-
1. Anise berries 1. Marie Brizard
2. Badalona

Service– Ice cold in a little

thick bottomed
tumbler. Different from PASTIS.

OH– 25 %
 AURUM
ITALY
Flavoring-
1. Oranges Brandy based where orange
Served
peel or whole orange is
2. Saffron infused
Slightly
warmed
rather than
cold
AURUM HINTS GOLD.
OH– 40 %

Forerunner of
Goldwasser
 BENEDICTINE
France
Flavorings-
1. Honey
2. Unknown –75
aromatizing
ingredients.

OH-40 %

D.O.M- Deo Optimo

Maximo
 CHARTREUSE
France
Flavorings- The original was known as ELIXIR
which had a fearsome ABV 71%.
1. 130 secret herbs and
plants are used.
Now days it has incarnations—
Cocktail-ALASKA(GIN) YELLOW(40%) AND GREEN(55 %)

Green is pale, leafy and has a less

herbal pungent smell.
Yellow is sweet ,honeyed with a Minty
flavour.
 COINTREAU-1849
France
It is a variety of Curacao.
Brandy based spirit flavored with
OH—40% peels of bitter oranges.

It is double distillation of grape brandy

Cocktail– WHITE LADY (GIN)
infused with orange peels,
sweetened and further aromatized
by secret plant ingredient

Served on the rocks or frapped.

 Cream Liqueurs
Flavorings—
Brands—
1. Coffee 1. Baileys
2. Chocolate 2. Cadburys

Oh– 17%
SERVED WITH ICE.
 CRÈME LIQUEURS
A whole range of liqueurs that use the prefix
“crème de” may be listed here. The flavors vary
with the type.

The most poplar brand producing them is

“MARIE BRIZARD”.
 SOME POPULAR CRÈME
LIQUEURS ARE-
1.) Crème de Fraise (Strawberry)
2.) Crème de Cacao (Chocolate)
3.) Crème de Menthe ( Mint)
4.) Crème de Mure ( Blackberry)
 Oh:– 25 to 30%
CURACAO
Dutch Common name Triple
Sec
Flavoring-
1. Bitter Oranges.
Cocktail– WHIP
(Cognac ,dry
It is white rum based vermouth)
flavored with the peel
of bitter green oranges.
But now days with
brandy or neutral
spirits.
 DRAMBUIE—1906
SCOTLAND
It is Scotch ,heather honey SERVED WITH AN EQUAL
MEASURE OF SCOTCH WHISKEY.
and herbs.

Near Edinburgh is Produced

OH– 40 %

Cocktail– RUSTY NAIL

 GALLIANO
ITALY
 Flavorings—
1.Anise Invented by ARTURO
VACCARI and Named in
2. Liquorice honor of Major Galliano.
3. Vanilla
Oh– 35% .

Cocktail— It is based on up to 80
Herbs, roots, berries and
MILANO(GIN) flowers from the alpine
slopes to north of italy.
 GLAYVA
Flavorings-
1. Heather Honey
IT IS SERVED
2. Orange peels STRAIGHT
3. Various Herbs

SCOTCH BASED
OH—35%
 KAHLUA
MEXICO
Flavorings-
1. Coffee
Oh– 26.5%

Slightly thicker in texture

and less sweet than its
Jamaican counterpart.

Cocktail– BLACK
RUSSIAN
 KUMMEL—1500S
HOLLAND
Flavorings –
1. Caraway seeds

OH– 39% Russian Controversy

IT IS MADE BY INFUSING THE SEEDS IN A

TYPE OF VODKA.

It is always served on the rocks.

 Liqueur Brandies
 There are essentially 3 fruit brandies – cherry, apricot and peach
– and although they are occasionally known by other names, it is
as cherry brandy etc that drinkers know them best.
 Of the three, the apricot variant has traveled the most. There are
true apricot distillates in eastern Europe. Good examples of
sweet apricot liqueurs are Bols Apricot Brandy, Cusenier and
Apry made by Marie Brizard Company.
 Cherry brandy is on of the few liqueurs that may just have been
invented by the English. Famous cherry liqueur brands include
Cherry Herring, Cherry Rocher, de Kuyper, Garnier and Bols.
 Peach brandy is the one least frequently seen, its most famous
manifestation probably being te one marketed by Bols.
 How to serve – Te best of these brandies make wonderful
digestifs served in small quantities, provided in small quantities
 MALIBU
CARIBBEAN
Flavoring-
1. Coconut

It is a blend of white rum

with coconut. Taste is
pleasing not too sweet.

OH—24%
Cocktail—Pina colada
 VAN DER HAM
SOUTH AFRICA
IT TRANSLATES AS ‘WHATS HIS NAME”. ITS
BASE CAPE BRANDY. OH- 25%.

Flavorings-
1. Naartijie peels
2. Herbs

Those who like their drinks a bit dry it is served half &
half with brandy.
 TIA MARIA
JAMAICA
Flavorings—
1. Coffee Cocktail-
2.)Spices SUNBURN

OH– 26.5% Served on the rocks