What the #$&@! Do I Do with This? Grand Marnier: What It Is and How to Use It.

You bought a spirit or liqueur because a cocktail recipe called for a very minute amount. Now you’re stuck with the remaining 9/10ths of the bottle and what to do with it. No worries. Thrifty bartenders weigh in with tips and recipes for getting every last drop out of an underutilized ingredient so it doesn’t gather dust on your bar shelf.

All orange liqueurs are not created equal, and very few can hold their own as both cordial and cocktail component. But then again, not all orange liqueurs are made from cognac, which is why Grand Marnier can class-ify your Sidecar as well as your after-dinner imbibing. And while it serves lovingly in a top-shelf-worthy Margarita, there’s so much versatility to this elegant, complex ingredient.

“Grand Marnier is a classic backbar staple that certainly deserves front-row status,” says Zachary Faden, the lead bartender at Mirabelle in Washington, D.C. “It offers cocktails citrus brightness, vanilla aromas and nutty nuances.” 

But Faden believes the orange liqueur’s appeal goes beyond libations, and it can be employed as a substitute for amaretto in an ambrosia salad or as a sublime addition to a marinade for sweeter seafood, like shrimp and scallops served with saffron and Grand Marnier-laced rice.

In drinks, Grand Marnier is generally used as a modifier to lend citrus tones. But it doesn’t need to be treated as a minor player, says New York City bartending vet Franky Marshall. “That’s really limiting and does a disservice to the liquid,” she says. “It’s a fantastic base to build from and works in a variety of styles of cocktails. Grand Marnier plays well with a variety of ingredients because of its richness and flavor—brown spirits, fresh fruits, coconut anything, sparkling wine." Salt and savory herbs are a refreshing contrast to the luscious citrus, and it marries well with the sweetness of an aged rum.

In the same way that bowls of clove-studded oranges decorate holiday tables, Grand Marnier with spice plays nice, says New York City chef and bartender Courtney Tietze, who infuses the liqueur with cinnamon or cloves. “Also, if floated properly in a glass, you can light Grand Marnier on fire for a wow factor,” says Tietze. 

Tietze raves about Grand Marnier’s amber-gold color and its unique aroma and flavor profile. “It has a complex nose of orange flowers with hints of toffee and caramel, which is complemented by cognac with nuances of hazelnuts and bitter orange,” he says. “The smooth finish when drinking it by itself is long and harmonious.” 

So while there’s no words to rhyme with “orange,” there’s a plethora of ingredients to mix with this sumptuous and robust French liqueur. As Marshall puts it, “Orange flavors are not always represented well, but the flavor of Grand Marnier is fresh, with depth and notes of marzipan and citrus.”