What Is Triple Sec? And How Is It Different from Cointreau?
Plus, several smart triple sec substitutes so you don't have to run to the liquor store.
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You’ve likely seen triple sec listed on cocktail and bar menus, or perhaps you’ve seen it called for in recipes when making cocktails at home. But what exactly is Triple Sec, and are there any substitutions for it? For more info, we tapped Jackie Gentry, a cocktail expert and bartender at The River and Rail Restaurant in Roanoke, Virginia.
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What Is Triple Sec?
Triple sec is a category of orange flavored liqueurs that originated in France.
Triple secs are used in a variety of classic cocktails including the Margarita, Cosmopolitan, Side Car, Mai Tai and Corpse Reviver #2. Tripe secs range in alcohol content from 20 to 40 percent Alcohol by Volume (ABV).
“Typically, triple secs are derived from sugar beet in which orange peels are steeped. The oranges used are harvested when their skin is still green and not fully ripened so the majority of the oils remain on the skin rather than the flesh of the fruit,” Gentry explains. “The spirit is then redistilled, mixed with more neutral spirit, water and powdered beet sugar. The name comes from the French word sec, which means dry, but this was simply a marketing technique as the liqueur is not distilled three time or thrice as dry as curacao or other liqueurs.”
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Triple Sec vs Cointreau: What’s the Difference?
Cointreau is a type of triple sec but with a significantly higher alcohol content (40 percent ABV). “Cointreau’s flavors are well balanced between bitter and sweet, the warm spices give complexity but more than anything, enhance the orange flavor rather than masking it,” Gentry says. “Because of this and its high ABV, Cointreau is not as much of a sipper but excels at being used in cocktails.”
Cointreau vs Grand Marnier
“In comparison, Grand Marnier is a blend of Cognac and Triple Sec, having the same ABV but more suited as a sipper on its own but can also be too spiritous/brandy forward to use in some cocktails, like a sidecar, which Cointreau is more suited for,” Gentry says.
Substitutes for Triple Sec
You can easily substitute Cointreau or curacao for triple sec, but there’s a wide variety of possible substitutes. “One of my favorite substitutes for triple sec is Aperol; it’s a huge orange bomb like Cointreau,” Gentry says. “When substituting specifically for Cointreau though, it’s important to find the balance of your sugar and acid with its lower ABV level in comparison. Other substitutions I’m a huge fan of are Clement Creole Shrub, Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao, Tempus Fugit Gran Classico Bitter, Strega and Italicus.”
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Drinks Using Triple Sec
Triple Sec is used in a variety of popular and classic cocktails including the Margarita, Cosmopolitan, Side Car, Mai Tai, Long Island Iced Tea and Corpse Reviver #2. Here are some of our favorite drink recipes using triple sec.
Margaritas: Our tried and true classic stirred Margarita is always a crowd-pleaser, but you can tweak the proportions to include a little more triple sec for an added punch of citrusy sweetness.
Cosmopolitan: Triple sec is one of the key ingredients in this shaken vodka cocktail. We’re particularly fond of using Cointreau to balance the tartness of the cranberries and add a little spicy warmth.
Grapefruit Long Island Iced Tea: For a crowd-pleasing, big-batch cocktail, our take on a Long Island Iced Tea is tops. The recipe pulls in bright, zesty grapefruit juice in place of sour mix, whose citrus notes are complemented by a generous helping of triple sec.
Tonga Mai Tai: Rather than being incorporated into the drink, here, triple sec is added as a float on top of this rum-, lime- and pineapple-based beverage drink. Sunset views optional, but highly recommended.
Cosmopolitan Fizz Punch: This festive punch is a mash-up of nineties-era Cosmos and a fifties classic ginger ale punch. Cointreau works especially well here as its warm spices complement the ginger ale while its sweetness tempers the tartness of the fresh cranberries.
Mango Tango: Triple sec brings extra fruity citrus flair to this blended tropical-leaning tipple starring lime and pineapple juice, frozen mango puree cubes and a duo of dark and coconut rums.
Marga-Heat-A: It’s not a margarita without triple sec, and this spicy riff is no exception. Triple sec adds its signature sweet-citrus hit but helps to balance out the heat from the chile pepper ice cubes.
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