Marie Brizard Products

[alacarte]

I just had a coffee drink at L'Absinthe brasserie that included Benedictine and Marie Brizzard (and a dollop of creme fraiche on top).

I asked to see the Marie Brizzard bottle, because I've never heard of this before. It smelled WONDERFUL -- liquorice-y like Sambuca, but more subtle and complex.

Does anyone know much about Brizzard? What's in that, anyway? What cocktails would you use it for? I'd love to learn more.

[alacarte]

Probably should have Googled first. Apparently this is the product I tried.

[slkinsey]

Marie Brizard is one of the best makers of liqueurs for mixing. Apry, their apricot brandy, is especially good. Most of the best bars in NYC use MB orange curacao. I think their white creme de cacao is pretty good as well. Info on their complete line here.

[Bricktop]

So far, I've managed to pick up MB's Apry, Poire William, and white creme de menthe.

All have been excellent, but they are somewhat tough to find. I'd love to get the white creme de cacao. It is on my list, and now I'll add the orange curacao too.

ETA: Wow, I looked at the link Sam provided. They have a lot of stuff I'd love to try.

I am going to have to get to work on this.

Edited November 4, 2006 by Bricktop (log)

[Snowy is dead]

So far ( and I've tried about 10 different products ) the difference in quality between MB anything and the cheap stuff ( orange curacao, for example ) is like the difference between cheap triple sec and cointreau. The Apry is a particular shining star, in my opinion. I would never drink bols apricot brandy, but the apry I've been known to drink straight.

I highly recommend picking some of their stuff up. The only downer is the cost. Almost everthing is about $20 US. Not too bad, but about $10-13 more than the cheaper varieties of their whole line. I imagine alot of folks would balk at paying $20 for creme de menthe...

[thirtyoneknots]

I have been very pleased with the Marie Brizard products I have tried, but I was wondering: is Apry currently being imported? There seemed to be some uncertainty about wether it was or not within the last few months. Their stuff is already rare enough, geez.

Question #2 in re Brizard: I have been wondering for some time about their quality. As I begin to use up old bottles of infrequently used liqueurs in generic lines (DeKuyper, mostly) I have been replacing them with Brizard. I was wondering though, what, if anything, does Marie Brizard make that is not considered to be the best of it's kind. For example: Their curacao seems to be widely regarded as best (and is certainly the best I have ever had) but I have never heard anyone say that their triple sec is as good as Cointreau (though it did get good marks when I have heard others comment on it). What else does Brizard make that someone else makes better? Some things get used up so slowly I want to make sure that I have the best possible.

Thanks

Andy

[jlo mein]

The other day I picked up the Blackberry liqueur after having a Fidel's Choice (rum, muddled cranberries, MB blackberry liqueur, brown sugar) at Century Lounge in Vancouver. Great stuff, although its a little expensive, costing ~$20CDN for only 500mL. For some reason, BC Liquor Stores only stock the blackberry one in 500mL.

The other Marie Brizard products they stock are Strawberry, Blue Curacao, Raspberry, and Watermelon (all 750mL).

[Friend of the Farmer]

If in Vancouver skip the MB and go for even higher quality Giffard for the price. It might be the only market in North America for the french Giffard line. They are fantastic. Hope they make it to the USA someday.

[johnder]

I have been very pleased with the Marie Brizard products I have tried, but I was wondering: is Apry currently being imported? There seemed to be some uncertainty about wether it was or not within the last few months. Their stuff is already rare enough, geez.

A big discussion over the fate of Apry can be found here.

It seems pretty up in the air at the moment.

John

[thirtyoneknots]

I have been very pleased with the Marie Brizard products I have tried, but I was wondering: is Apry currently being imported? There seemed to be some uncertainty about wether it was or not within the last few months. Their stuff is already rare enough, geez.

A big discussion over the fate of Apry can be found here.

It seems pretty up in the air at the moment.

John

←

Yeah I remembered that, but on this thread Apry was being discussed as if nothing was wrong, so I was curious if anyone had heard anything about it that hadn't been posted to the Apry thread.

-Andy

[johnder]

I have been very pleased with the Marie Brizard products I have tried, but I was wondering: is Apry currently being imported? There seemed to be some uncertainty about wether it was or not within the last few months. Their stuff is already rare enough, geez.

A big discussion over the fate of Apry can be found here.

It seems pretty up in the air at the moment.

John

←

Yeah I remembered that, but on this thread Apry was being discussed as if nothing was wrong, so I was curious if anyone had heard anything about it that hadn't been

posted to the Apry thread.

-Andy

←

Last bit of information I heard was they were supposed to start shipping again on the 20th (of October). But surprise, they didn't.

I have pretty much written it off at this point, hopefully one day I will be surprised, but I am no longer holding my breath.

[eje]

If in Vancouver skip the MB and go for even higher quality Giffard for the price.  It might be the only market in North America for the french Giffard line.  They are fantastic.  Hope they make it to the USA someday.

←

Only Vancouver?

Wouldn't it have to be available through the LCBO?

Oooh, Giffard seems to make a delightful sounding Apricot liqueur!

Abricot du Roussillon (Premium)

edit - Oh, never mind, LCBO stands for liqueur control board ontario! Duh. I guess I was under the impression it was for all the provinces.

Edited November 6, 2006 by eje (log)

[Bricktop]

Add Parfait Amour (I liked the name ) to the Bricktop bar. Off to find uses.

[johnder]

My fav cocktail with Parfait... The Violet Femme.

Find it here.

[thirtyoneknots]

I have a bottle of the Brizzard Poire William that I'm quite fond of too.

←

I was wondering if that stuff was any good. I grabbed some a month or two ago to make a Reveillon (great drink) and I liked the stuff well enough, but since I had never had it before I wasn't sure if the MB stuff was all that it could be, since another example I found was like $25/375ml whereas the Brizard was around $20/750.

But hey I like it, I guess that's good enough.

-Andy

[BTR]

I'd lay dollars to donuts that the MB Poire William is not an eau de vie but a liqueur.

[Bricktop]

I'd lay dollars to donuts that the MB Poire William is not an eau de vie but a liqueur.

←

It is indeed a liqueur.

[thirtyoneknots]

I'd lay dollars to donuts that the MB Poire William is not an eau de vie but a liqueur.

←

It is indeed a liqueur.

←

Yeah I kind of wondered about that when I was buying it. Perhaps I should buy a true Poire William eau-de-vie and compare. At the risk of getting severely off-topic, does anyone have any recommendations?

-Andy

[eje]

Yeah I kind of wondered about that when I was buying it.  Perhaps I should buy a true Poire William eau-de-vie and compare. At the risk of getting severely off-topic, does anyone have any recommendations?

-Andy

←

Hi Andy...

Unlike some other liqueur companies, as far as I know Brizard only makes liqueurs, no eau de vies.

The comparison with a real eau de vie will be pretty stark.

Eau de vies are bone dry, containing more the essence and scent of the fruit rather than the flavor, per se.

I'm no expert; but, in my experience Trimbach (France) and Clear Creek (US) are good brands with reasonably priced eau de vies for cocktail use.

Check this thread for more info:

Eau De Vie, Can someone please explain??

In any case, yeah, the branding and labelling can be confusing on liqueurs, not to mention in the cocktail recipes which don't specify whether they mean fruit brandy or fruit flavored brandy.

But, to get back to Brizard, I think the only Curacao which can compete with theirs might be the Senior Curacao of Curacao. But, I believe the Senior product is made on a neutral spirit base rather than the brandy base of the brizard Curacao, making it a somewhat different animal.

Edited November 10, 2006 by eje (log)

[KatieLoeb]

The Brizard Poire William is most definitely liqueur. Sweeter and less boozy than an eau de vie, which is more akin to a clear and much more alcohol laden fruit flavored rocket fuel. Eau de vie is like real German or Austrian schnapps, or perhaps vice versa. The Brizard is more like a sweeter American style "schnapps", but of a much higher quality. Nothing like the corn syrup and artificially flavored crap we call schnapps.

[thirtyoneknots]

So Ms. Loeb, what are your favorite uses for this faux-de-vie? I'll probably try to snag a bottle of true Poire William but I still enjoy the other stuff...it's just that now I don't know what to do with it.

-Andy

[Bricktop]

I won't speak for Katie, but I will give it a go in a Pear Martini instead of my usual Belle de Brillet. The latter has a cognac base, and it will be interesting to see the difference, apart from the fact that the MB was at least $10 cheaper a bottle. I love the color of the pear martini made with BdB.

That was 2 oz BdB, 1 oz citrus vodka, 1 oz lime juice. (Gary Regan SF Chronicle recipe in a Belle de Brillet thread). It was too much lime for me, but I will use the same ratio with the MB Poire William for starters. I did a quickie side by side of the BdB and PW when I bought it a few weeks ago, and the PW struck me as sweeter, and probably well suited to cocktails where you can add a little lemon or lime.

[Alchemist]

OK, I am totally over Marie Brizard. I am trying to figure out a way to NEVER, EVER, EVER buy another bottle of their products for any of the bars I am involved with. I am going to try to find a way to produce a product that is a higher quality for less money. I need it to be relativity easy and fast to do, as when you start adding labor into equation things can get pricy fast.

I need to be able to produce large amounts, as it is for a bar, so running out is not an option.

I need it to have integrity. No food coloring ect. But I am not above using commercial products. Smuckers Simply Fruit might work if it imparts good flavor and can be bought in large quanities for the right price. I am wondering if an inexpensive sweetish wine could help add bulk and body to the concoction.

This is a little different that “Homemade”. As price and time are of particular concern.

I am looking to produce an Orange Curacao and an Apricot Something. They need to be right about 35-40 % ABV.

Anybody have any ideas? R&D starting soon.

Thanks,

Toby

[thirtyoneknots]

OK, I am totally over Marie Brizard.

←

Any particular reason? I've been pleased as punch with pretty much everything from them I've tried (ok well maybe not the Grand Orange, but that was a mistake on my part).

I'm pretty sure that for the reasons you list (labor cost, etc) and others you didn't, this is not really an economically viable option. Even an expensive line of products like Marie Brizard, or even Grand Marnier, etc, have the tremendous advantage of economies of scale working in their favor. When you're buying your spirits by the train car then it becomes hard to compete.

Edited March 28, 2009 by thirtyoneknots (log)

[Alchemist]

Without going on a rant dripping with vitriol I will say it is the ability to get their products consistently.

Toby