The pleasure's all yours
Grand Marnier—the cognac-based liqueur from France—has given birth to some of the world’s most potent cocktails. We asked the brand ambassador in Asia, Gulliaume Jubien, to whip up exotic cocktails for six different moods.
Gulliaume Jubien
Bring on the Grand Marnier! A cognac that combines the wildness of the Caribbean Islands with the exotic flamboyance of the French. “Wherever you are and whatever the occasion or mood, there’s a Grand Marnier cocktail to go with it,” says Gulliaume Jubien, the French ambassador for the liqueur in Asia.
What is Grand Marnier?
It’s primarily cognac with Caribbean bitter orange peels and sugar and it’s 40 per cent proof. It’s also a powerful liqueur to gulp down neat—we wouldn’t advise you to try it unless you have done it before. While it is mostly used as an ingredient or a base for cocktails, it is also an amazing apéritif. In Italian and French cuisine, it is also used to spice up some dishes.
Grand Chilli Berry: Drink whenever youre feeling adventurous
Eaux-de-vie made exclusively with Ugni Blanc grapes undergo two distinct distillations before being stored in handmade oak casks and aged up to five years in the cellars. A blend is created that perfectly matches the flavour of the Caribbean Citrus Bigaradia orange peels, which is finally distilled to produce an aromatic concentrate.
GM facts
For over the last 25 years, Grand Marnier has been the most widely exported French Liqueur. Today, Grand Marnier is available in over 150 countries. A bottle of GM is sold every two seconds worldwide. In India, it has just been introduced and a 750 ml bottle of the liqueur is available for Rs 1,500 (ex-Delhi).
Potent Potion: Grand Marnier cocktails get your creative juices flowing
Drink: Grand Chilli Berry
How: Take a slice of red hot chili pepper, 3 basil leaves, 25 ml strawberry puree, 30 ml Grand Marnier and 30 ml vodka. Muddle the chilli and the basil leaves and add all ingredients—shaken and double strained— into a frozen Martini glass.
Why: Perks you up this one. A powerful drink which removes all doubt and fear. Roar with confidence after guzzling a couple of these berry berry potent cocktails.
When: Celebrating success.
Drink: Grand Master Flash.
How: Take a slice of ginger, an orange wedge, 2 wedges of lime and 50 ml of Grand Marnier. Muddle the ginger first and then the lime and orange wedges. Add the Grand Marnier, shake and double strain onto a high-ball glass over ice. Top-up with ginger ale. Why: You can drink it all night and still feel great. Refreshing yet spicy. After three drinks, you’re liable to say “yahoo”.
Truly Grand: Liqueur for the sophisticates
Drink: Forbidden Red Dragon.
How: Take 40 ml Grand Marnier, a tablespoon of vodka, 25 ml mixed berry fruit puree, a teaspoon of strawberry syrup and 80 ml of jasmine tea. Shake and add the ingredients and strain over ice into a tall glass. Garnish with a white orchid.
Why: Aromatic and sophisticated, this jasmine tea flavoured cocktail is also infused with berries. You don’t really feel the alcohol over the riot of flavours. Bright ideas pop up every minute.
When: Feeling adventurous
Drink: Grand Chilli Berry
How: Take a slice of red hot chili pepper, 3 basil leaves, 25 ml strawberry puree, 30 ml Grand Marnier and 30 ml vodka. Muddle the chilli and the basil leaves and add all ingredients—shaken and double strained— into a frozen Martini glass.
Why: Perks you up this one. A powerful drink which removes all doubt and fear. Roar with confidence after guzzling a couple of these berry berry potent cocktails
When: A cold afternoon.
Drink: Grand Marnier 30 ml with coffee of hot chocolate.
How: Make yourself a tall mug of hot coffee or chocolate. Pour 30 ml of Grand Marnier from the top and gently mix with a spoon. Why: Warms your heart and re-energizes. “You will feel warm enough to indulge in some sports,” promises Gulliaume
Heady Brew: The right choice to warm you up
Drink: Grand Blazer.
How: Take 25 ml of Grand Marnier, 25 ml of Hennessy VSOP, 1 tsp vanilla sugar, one orange zest, 3 cloves and one cinnamon stick. Zest the orange in a snifter glass. Pick it with cloves. Add the vanilla sugar, cinnamon, Grand Marnier and the cognac. Flame it before serving and let it cool for a minute. Be careful—the rim of the glass becomes quite hot
The birth of a name
Grand Marnier was originally named 'Curacao Marnier'. But when the founder Louis-Alexandre Marnier-Lapostolle had his friend Cesar Ritz taste his creation sometime in the 1890s, the famous hotelier suggested a new name "Grand Marnier". "A grand name for a grand drink," he is reputed to have said, ignoring a trend in turn-of-the-century Paris to name everything "Petit".
As we spoke, Gulliaume served up two rounds of his favourite cocktail— the Grand Master Flash. Here’s how it’s done.
1. Gulliaume muddles the ginger
2. In goes the lime and the orange wedges
3. The Grand Marnier is poured from the top, in style
4. Gulliaume shakes it for all its worth
5. The drink is strained into a high ball glass
6. Pop goes the ale
7. All set to be sipped!
