Bitters
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Bitters are an herbal preparation with a bitter flavor. Bitters were formerly manufactured as patent medicines, but most now are sold to be used in cocktails.
They are not to be confused with bitter, a type of British ale.
Some of the different kinds of bitters used behind the bar are:
- Angostura ™ Bitters;
- Peychaud ™ Bitters;
- orange bitters
Both Angostura Bitters and Peychaud Bitters are compounds whose chief taste comes from gentian, a bitter herb.
Angostura Bitters was first compounded in Venezuela in 1824 by a German physician, who intended it as a remedy for stomach maladies. It was exported to England and to Trinidad, where it came to be used in a number of cocktails following its medicinal use by the British Navy in Pink Gin. Angostura and similar gentian bitters preparations are still of some value to settle a mild case of nausea or an upset stomach. Their use in cocktails, however, accounts for the vast majority of the sales. Angostura was named for the town of Angostura in Venezuela. It contains no angostura bark, a medicinal bark which is named after the same town.
Peychaud's Bitters is associated with New Orleans, Louisiana, and can be difficult to find elsewhere. It, too, is a gentian based bitters, with a subtly different and sweeter taste than the Angostura brand. Peychaud's Bitters is associated with the Sazerac cocktail.
Orange bitters are made from the rinds of unripe oranges. They are called for in some older cocktail recipes.
Medicinal quantities of quinine were occasionally used in old cocktail recipes. Quinine is still found in tonic water, now found mostly in drinks with gin.
External links
- Angostura Bitters official site (http://www.angostura.com/)
- Sazerac Co., makers of Peychaud's Bitters (http://www.sazerac.com/index.html)
- Recipe and source for orange bitters (http://www.drinkboy.com/LiquorCabinet/Flavorings/OrangeBitters.html)
- Bitters Distributor (http://www.feebrothers.com/Page.asp?Script=2)de:Magenbitter