What Is Liqueur and How Can I Use It?

Liqueur is easier to cook with than it looks. Here's how to choose, use, and store it, what to substitute, and 571 recipes to get you started.

What is liqueur?

A liqueur is an alcoholic beverage that has been flavored with fruit, herbs, nuts, spices, flowers, or cream and bottled with added sugar. Liqueurs are typically quite sweet; they are usually not aged for long but may have resting periods during their production to allow flavors to marry.

The distinction between liqueurs and spirits is not simple because many spirits (e.g., flavored vodka) are available today in a flavored form. The most reliable guide to classification is that liqueurs contain added sugar, but spirits do not. Most liqueurs have a lower alcohol content (15%-30% ABV) than spirits, but some contain as much as 55% ABV. Dessert wines may taste like a liqueur but they contain no added flavoring.

Liqueurs are made worldwide and are served in many ways: by themselves, poured over ice, with coffee, mixed with cream or other mixers to create cocktails, etc. They are often served with or after a dessert. Liqueurs are also used in cooking.

Some liqueurs are prepared by infusing certain woods, fruits, or flowers, in either water or alcohol, and adding sugar or other items. Others are distilled from aromatic or flavoring agents.