The Most Collected Liqueurs From Last Week

Velvet Falernum is a liqueur flavored with lime, almond, and spices. Today, John D Taylor's version — which some refer to as the original falernum — is produced by R.L. Seale Ltd. in Barbados. The rum-based liqueur is bottled at 11% ABV and can be used in a variety of drinks such as swizzles, daiquiris, and Mai Tais among others.

RumChata is a liqueur made with Caribbean rum and dairy cream from Wisconsin. Cinnamon, vanilla, and sugar are also used. It is based on Horchata, a Latin American beverage made from rice, sugar, vanilla, and other spices.

Disaronno is an amaretto (almond-flavored liqueur) with a recipe, the brand claims, that dates back to 1525. It was first commercially produced and marketed by the Reina family in the early 20th century in Saronna, just outside of Milano. Originally called Amaretto di Saronno, the iconic square bottle first arrived in 1942. In 2001, the brand dropped Amaretto from its name and is now simply called Disaronno.

First introduced in 1974, Baileys Original Irish Cream is made from Irish whiskey, Irish cream, spirit, and chocolate. This brand is currently owned by Diageo and there are many other flavors in the Baileys portfolio including vegan and gluten free versions. Bottled at 17% ABV in Ireland.

Fernet-Branca was created in 1845 by Bernardino Branca in Milan where it is still made today. It is made from a proprietary recipe of 27 different herbs, roots, and spices only some of which are disclosed. They include: aloe ferox, bitter orange, chamomile, cardamom, cinchona bark, cinnamon, galangal, gentian, iris, laurel, laraha, linden, myrrh, zedoary and saffron. It is aged in 15,000-20,000 liter Slovenian oak vats for at least a year. Due to the popularity of the brand in Argentina, a second distillery located outside of Buenos Aires was founded in 1941. Fernet-Branca & Coke is how it is most consumed there.

Aperol first debuted a century ago, in 1919. Known for its orange hue, and today for the ubiquitous and eponymous Aperol Spritz, Aperol is flavored with ingredients including cinchona, rhubarb, and gentian. The bittersweet liqueur has been a part of the Campari portfolio since 2003.

Cointreau is a clear, orange flavored liqueur developed in 1875 by Édouard Cointreau, son of one of the co-founding brothers of the distillery. In 1885 it became the first registered brand of triple sec, although the brand dropped "triple sec" from its name in early 20th century. It is made with both bitter and sweet orange peels which are macerated in neutral alcohol and then distilled. The only other ingredients are sugar and water. Suitable for any recipe calling for triple sec. Note: As February 2023, Cointreau has redesigned the bottle to celebrate the orange, its key ingredient, more prominently. The new label also has a QR code granting consumers access to almost 500 drinks.

Grand Marnier Cuvée du Centenaire was first introduced in 1927 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the House of Marnier Lapostolle. Like the flagship Grand Marnier bottling, this is a blend of cognac and bitter orange distillate. However for this bottle, only XO cognacs from Grande and Petite Champagne crus are used.

Campari was created circa 1860 by a Lombardy-born man named Gaspare Campari. He worked his way up to barman in a cafe in Torino before moving to Milano where he created his renowned bitter concoction. His namesake bitters was first known as Bitter all’usa d’Holanda and its ingredients have never been disclosed other than to say that “it is the result of an infusion of bitter herbs, aromatic plants, and fruit in alcohol and water”. The only other change to the original recipe occured in 2006 when carmine (a natural dye sourced from crushed cochineal insects) ceased to be used for coloring. Now artificial colors are used.