Cointreau vs Triple SEC
Triple sec is a liquor that is not only delicious but also indispensable for home bars due to its ability to create various wonderful cocktails. It is a citrus liquor with a sweetness that makes it appealing to people of all ages. However, there is another name, Cointreau, that often confuses many. This is because of the similarities between the two orange liquor drinks. Despite apparent similarities, there are differences between these two liquors that will be discussed in this article.
Triple SEC
Triple SEC is a strong, orange-flavored but colorless liquor. It is named this way because the liquor is distilled three times. It was originally made on an island called Curacao in the Caribbean with the dried peel of oranges. Interestingly, there is also a brand of Triple Sec known as Curacao. The word “sec” in Triple SEC signifies the fact that the liquor is dry or less sweet than the Curacao that the Dutch made earlier than the French. The French made Triple SEC as a clear liquid.
To be clear, Triple SEC is not a brand of liquor but a generic name that refers to orange-flavored liquor made from the distillation of dried peel of oranges. It is considered a Caribbean drink, although it is also made in many other South American countries such as Haiti and Brazil and even in a European country like Spain. There are many different varieties of oranges used to make Triple SEC, including both sweet and bitter oranges.
Cointreau
Cointreau is an orange-flavored liquor that is a kind of Triple SEC. It is made by distilling the peel of bitter and sweet oranges. In fact, it is one of the best-known brand names of this generic orange-flavored liquor. Cointreau is enjoyed by people worldwide as it is and also as one of the ingredients in various cocktails made with this orangey liquor. People drink Cointreau both as a digestive and an appetizer.
Key Takeaways
- Cointreau is a brand while Triple SEC is the generic name of the orange-flavored liquor made after distillation of the peel of sweet and bitter oranges.
- Cointreau is much more expensive than Triple SEC.
- Cointreau is made in France, whereas Triple SEC may be made anywhere in the Caribbean and also in other South American countries. Cointreau is considered to be a very high quality of Triple SEC, and its alcoholic content is higher (40%) than in Triple SEC (20-25%).
