Food + Drink
EVENT: La Maison Cointreau
Cointreau held an anniversary party of epic proportion at a 4-floor pop-up party in NYC at La Maison Cointreau. The experience promised to take attendees on a trip through the orange liqueur’s 160-year history – which it did to a delightful and delicious effect. Guests went through three interactive experiences inside a rather beautiful West village 19th century townhouse, each featuring different Cointreau cocktails. The first was inside the library, where we met 6th generation heir, Alfred Cointreau. Naturally, he was quite knowledgeable about his family’s legacy, and he showed us some rare and ancient cocktail books that highlighted the use of Cointreau in the first imaginings of classic drinks like the Sidecar or the Devil’s Own.
We then moved to the kitchen, where the grand banquet table was filled with fruits, herbs and cocktail-making utensils at various stations. Mixologist Kyle Ford guided us through a fun session of making our own drinks incorporating Cointreau. Then it was off through the secret passage under the townhouse to the theater room where we enjoyed a few more drinks (one with black tea was especially good with the liqueur), and we were treated to two performances: glass player Jonny Rodgers created haunting loops to go with his guitar, and singer Nicole Renaud had a light-up accordion to accompany her French torch songs.
It was quite enchanting overall; a very fun and well-executed event that accomplished the main goal – I have a new appreciation for Cointreau. I highly suggest taking this journey which hits Dallas, San Francisco & Los Angeles next.
To learn more about La Maison Cointreau, check out their website.
Recipe: The Sidecar
equal parts of Cointreau, cognac & lemon juice
sugared rim: optional but recommended
