Name: Grand Marnier Liqueur

Color: Light Brown

Nose: Orange, citrus zest, sugar, earthy cognac

Taste: Orange, sugar cream, cognac finish

Grand Marnier is a French orange flavored liqueur which is a blend of cognac, orange, sugar, and is bottled at 40%abv. It was created in the 1880’s and is enjoyed as a after dinner drink, in cocktails, and used in certain foods. I had not sampled Grand Marnier in years, but I needed it to make special flavored cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving, so I thought it was worth a review. 

In the late 1990’s I worked in the restaurant business in Cape Cod and afterwork we would go out for drinks. A coworker always ordered a Sam Adams Lager & Grand Marnier. One might I decided to order the same combo and for many years after that I drank Grand Marnier as an after-dinner drink. In the early 2000’s occasionally my friend and I would play darts and drink Guinness in a British dive bar in Ft Lauderdale. The loser had to buy the winner a Grand Marnier Centennial. I recall that being a $25 drink at the time.

Grand Marnier is a good after dinner drink, but my preference has changed as I have gotten older. It is now too sweet for me to really enjoy neat. I made an Old Fashioned and it was still too sweet for me and became harder to drink as the ice melted.

Cocktails: Cosmopolitan, Margarita, Sangria, Sidecar, B-52, and Old Fashioned. 

Cooking: Flambé dishes (crêpes Suzette), Grand Marnier soufflé, and crème brûlée. 

Other expressions:  Cordon Rouge, Cordon Jaune, Cuvée du Centenaire (“Centennial Edition”), Cuvée Spéciale Cent Cinquantenaire, and Cuvée Louis-Alexandre Marnier-Lapostolle.

Priced around $35+ and worth the money as a after dinner drink, mixer, or cooking liqueur if you like the flavor profile.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!