Brovo Orange Curacao

Brovo Orange Curacao is a Chicago-born liqueur built on a three-spirit base: neutral cane spirit (white rum), neutral grain spirit (vodka), and a two-year French brandy. The blend is infused with three distinct dried orange peels—sweet California Central Valley orange, bitter Laranha from Curaçao, and Seville orange from Spain—alongside coriander, clove, hibiscus, and vanilla. The formula was authored by Laurent Lebec of Big Star in Chicago, which explains the cocktail-forward structure and the slightly botanical edge that sets this apart from mass-market orange liqueurs. Brovo Spirits operates in Woodinville, Washington, where founder Rob Hess has built a reputation for liqueurs and vermouth that bartenders actually want to stock. This orange curaçao finishes with a turbinado simple syrup made from brown sugar, bringing the sugar content to thirty percent—a rich, viscous sweetness that coats the glass. The addition of vegetable-based glycerin, around one-and-a-half percent, gives the liqueur body and a soft mouthfeel without artificial thickeners. The spirit base and the triple-orange peel combination create layers: bright citrus up front, bitter complexity in the middle, warm spice on the finish. Expect candied orange rind, a whisper of clove, and a clean sweetness that doesn't veer into syrup territory. This curaçao works in classic margaritas, sidecars, and mai tais where you want orange presence without cloying the drink. It's also a capable modifier in stirred drinks—try a few dashes in an old fashioned or a boulevardier to add citrus lift without full-on sweetness. The hibiscus and vanilla notes come through most clearly when you sip it neat or over a single large cube, which is how Lebec likely intended it to be tasted before it hit the mixing tin. Available for pickup at our Lincoln Park bottle shop at 1128 W Armitage Ave, local Chicago delivery, or nationwide shipping.