Looking For A New Summer Cocktail? Cointreau Can Help With These Musical Pairings

Sixth-generation Cointreau family, Alfred Cointreau is the Brand Heritage Manager and cocktail connoisseur who continues to carry out the Cointreau family legacy and can be commended for his expertise in cocktail mixology. 

A job where drinking is a pre-requisite and bars around the world double as an office space, Alfred recently visited Sydney to throw a private cocktail party to celebrate.

From crème brulee to crepes and soufflé; the French may as well have written the book on cuisine, whipping up some of the planets most decadent sweet treats to date. As with food, alcohol is also a favoured pillar of the French culture and a prevalent ingredient in many famous cocktails. 

You may have heard of Cointreau; whether you saw your mum adding it to her lemon cake as a child or skimmed passed it on a cocktail menu; it’s a colourless orange-tinged concoction made up of distilled alcohol, water, sugar and orange peel. A sweet treat that creates even sweater ones, Cointreau’s versatility allows it to work in both food and beverages. 

And by beverages, we’re talking margaritas, the fizz, cosmopolitans and sidecar; four classic favourites which are as palatable as one can imagine thanks to the magic little orange-flavoured liqueur. Originating in a French distillery in 1849 by the Cointreau family, unbeknownst to many we’re still knocking back the liqueur every weekend centuries later.

Music, much like cocktails, is a combination of classics and twists and to celebrate Alfred’s arrival to Australia Cointreau decided to pair four of his favourite cocktails with four genres of music. Each reflective of an era which shaped history, the Margarita, The Fizz, Cosmopolitan and Sidecar go hand-in-hand with some of our favourite types of music, both new and old. 

Margarita
Named after chic socialite, Margarita Sames who first whipped up the cocktail whilst entertaining guests in Mexico in 1948, this cocktail goes hand-in-hand with any iconic party playlist. A fun and refreshing blend of tequila and Cointreau, Margaritas are best accompanied by soundtracks of summer, from Jungle Boogie by Kool & The Gang to Ocean Alley’s Holiday; this drink is a blend of timelines with dance hits and bangers in mind.

The Fizz
A blend of Cointreau, lime juice and soda water; this cocktail is simple yet bubbly and was born in 1900s New Orleans. Originally made with gin with a variation of Cointreau later created, this cocktail draws similarities to covers; with the latter often being just as big of a hit as the original. From Tash Sultana’s Like A Version of MGMT’s Electric Feel to Lorde’s cover of Frank Ocean’s Solo, The Fizz is the cocktail of song covers and is symbolic that new is nearly always improved. 

Cosmopolitan
Shaken not stirred, a ‘Cosmo’ is a blush-pink modern Cointreau classic born in the early 1900’s, that became a big hit in the late '90s and early noughties much like Backstreet Boys. If you’re anything like Carrie Bradshaw and enjoy a lip-smacker tasting beverage, a Cosmo is best served during a Saturday night out on the town. Anything from The Cranberries to Mary J Blige, No Doubt to Destiny’s Child; the Cosmo is an ode to the '90.

Sidecar
The first and most iconic Cointreau cocktail, the origins of the Sidecar trace back to the 1920s in Paris and is one of the most popular cocktail classics to date. Made up of Cognac, orange liqueur and lemon juice, Sidecar is a joy to drink and like rock’n’roll, will never die. From The Rolling Stones to AC/DC, The Beatles to Queen, the Sidecar is like a classic hit from some of the greatest bands in musical history which are still killing it half a century later, and so Sidecar represents the eternally popular rock’n’roll genre.