Quick Guide: What are Bitters? (2024)

FAQs

What is the purpose of bitters? ›

The purpose of bitters is to balance out the taste of a co*cktail. co*cktails primarily contain sweet and sour flavors. By adding another primary taste, bitter, into mixed drinks, a co*cktail is given a more complex—and complete—flavor profile.

Bitters have sharp, pungent flavors that are made from base spirits infused with herbs, fruits, spices, roots, tree bark or other botanicals that typically come in small glass bottles with a dropper. Much like the spices or salt we use to enhance our meals, just a couple drops of bitters can enhance our co*cktails.

Put simply, bitters are a flavoring extract made by macerating different ingredients—often dried botanicals that can range anywhere from fruit to bark—in a mixture of alcohol and water. Some brands also add sweeteners, colorants, or even glycerin, but at face value, bitters are a pretty basic concoction.

“Bitters are to co*cktails as salt is to food,” Bitterman says. “They improve and align flavors just like salt does; they help to accentuate flavor and they bring their own flavors."

They are an essential ingredient in many staple bar drinks. co*cktail bitters are more concentrated than digestive bitters and have extraordinarily strong flavors. Subsequently, bartenders add co*cktail bitters in small amounts to their drink recipes and never serve them to customers straight.

Will I Get Drunk Off Bitters? Bit of an interesting question here with a complex, yet straightforward answer: Yes, but no. Yes in that, while bitters is typically comprised of about 45% alcohol, the truth is, you usually only put a few dashes in here or there for flavor, not additional alcohol.

Alcohol Content of Bitters

Since most bitters are used by dashes or in drops, the amount of alcohol is minuscular, making the ABV difficult to trace. That's why they're often marketed as non-alcoholic, although they are made from alcohol. We always say that bitters and soda are what to drink when you're not drinking.

In 1870, Siegert's three sons migrated to Trinidad and established the bitters as an essential ingredient in co*cktails and food. With four bitters variations: Aromatic Bitters, Orange Bitters, Cocoa Bitters, and Amaro Di Angostura, Angostura is a staple for bartenders and professional and home cooks.

Bitters are neutral alcohol infused with herbs, spices, fruits, roots, tree bark, and other botanicals. Common ingredients in bitters include orange peel, gentian root, cassia bark, cascarilla, and cinchona bark. co*cktail bitters are different from Italian bitter liqueur or amaro (plural amari).

Vermouth can be considered bitters because it is made by adding bitter wormwood to wine: By definition, it is wine-based and made with wormwood (the word “vermouth” derives from the German word for “wormwood,” wermuth), with additional alcohol and herbs, as well as optional sugar and color.

What are the two types of bitters? ›

Bitters are of two types: Digestive bitters and co*cktail bitters. As the name implies, digestive bitters aid in the digestion of food. These bitters are usually sipped straight or on the rocks after a meal and are more popular in Europe than in North America.

A few drops of bitters in your morning coffee can perk up a cup—especially if you like to stir in milk, cream, and/or sugar. The bitters help balance out the sweetness from the dairy and sugar. Just keep in mind that the bitters should enhance, not overpower the coffee.

When getting started with the Old Fashioned, you should always use Angostura bitters. Angostura bitters is the ubiquitous benchmark aromatic bitters and always the default choice when no brand is specified. Angostura bitters always works.

Bitters are what make co*cktails more than just ice and booze. They add flavor, complexity, and sophistication, and they did so long before the age of sweeteners, exotic fruits, and modern additives.

They support liver health

Bitter flavors support the liver in its two most important functions: they trigger the production of bile, a digestive compound that breaks down fats and improves nutrient absorption, and boost the liver's detoxification efforts.

Today, bitter herbs are still used medicinally for digestive complaints, such as gas, bloating, constipation and indigestion. By increasing the activity of your bowels, bitters can be an effective way to combat constipation, low appetite, nausea, gas and bloating.

The ideal timeframe to take digestive bitters is right before a meal, or about 10 minutes before you start eating, according to Zellner. “Bitters can also be used after a meal, especially if you've eaten a little too much (Thanksgiving dinner, anyone?) or if you're feeling bloated or gassy,” says Zellner.

“A bitter is a long maceration of botanicals (plants, herbs, roots, fruits) in alcohol. Just take half a glass of soda with a dash of Angostura bitter and lime juice and give it a good stir before drinking. The bitters help settle your stomach and the club soda helps rehydrate you.

Angostura brand bitters is often incorrectly believed to have poisonous qualities because it is associated with angostura bark (which it does not contain), which, although not toxic, during its use as a medicine was often adulterated by unscrupulous sellers, who padded out the sacks of bark with cheaper, poisonous ...

Why are they called bitters? ›

Why are they Called Bitters? Bitters are called “bitters” because of their flavor profile. Although, it does not necessarily mean that they taste bitter. The herbs and barks used to give off that strong and sharp taste due to their tannin levels.

Yes, you can make an Old Fashioned without bitters! A traditional recipe features whiskey, sugar, orange peel, and a small amount of Angostura bitters. However, the bitters can be substituted for muddled fruit, such as orange or maraschino cherries!

An Old Fashioned calls for two to three dashes of bitters—no more, no less—that are added to the glass once the sugar or simple syrup is in. While the amount seems small, having too many or too few dashes can dramatically change the taste makeup of the drink. The type and quality of bitters matters too.

The stimulation of these bitter receptors promotes healthy digestion by increasing digestive secretions. This leads to better absorption of nutrients, natural detoxification of the liver, and — thanks to the gut-brain connection — bitters can even have a positive effect on stress.

Therefore, bitters in general are a great weapon to control sugar cravings. Almost all bitters will work for this, as long as they contain bittering agents and not just aromatics.

Bitters and soda is an easy-to-make alternative to drink when you aren't drinking. Just add a few dashes of co*cktail bitters to your favorite flavor of soda to create an effervescent and flavorful beverage.

Bitters are 44 percent alcohol, but you'd have to drink a good amount of them to actually feel a buzz.

But do they need to be refrigerated? Angostura Bitters don't need to be refrigerated. Just store them in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight. Ideally, you'll want to put them in a cupboard or pantry with low humidity levels, away from your stovetop or oven.

Bitters, unlike liqueurs, are often unsweetened, though this too is not at all a rule. The real choice for the home bitterer is whether to go all-in-one or do separate infusions. It's in the name; you put together all the ingredients you want in your bitters in one vessel.

Aromatic bitters, according to our experts, are the most common and classic bitters you can get. They tend to have notes of spices and bittering herbs and are traditionally added to co*cktails like old-fashioneds, pisco sours, and Sazeracs.

How often should you drink bitters? ›

Take shortly before or after meals, up to 6 times/day.

In a co*cktail, especially a bourbon or whiskey co*cktail, bitters can be essential. Bitters create balance. Bitters work well with bourbon, such a sweet spirit, because they can tame that sweetness. When you taste bourbon and find those sweet vanilla, corn, caramel, fruit or nut notes, you can balance that with bitters.

Bitters are aromatic, typically alcohol-based infusions of bittering botanticals (gentian root, cinchona bark, and cassia are common) and flavoring agents like fruit peels, spices, dried flowers, and herbs. They are sold in small bottles and administered in drops and dashes to add complexity to co*cktails.

Because of this, most bitters have a shelf life comparable to any spirit: essentially indefinite. Like all spirits, chemical reactions and evaporation in the bottle will eventually start to change the taste if you keep the same bottle for a decade or more, but none of it will hurt you and the product won't spoil.

Pouring soda down the spirals of a bar spoon allows bubbles to attach to the metal and enter spirits much more gracefully without fizzing over, thus maintaining that satisfying carbonation. “It works like a dipstick in a car — you pour oil down the dipstick, and it will stick to it,” says Stewart.

Here's a good question: Do I add bitters before or after a drink is stirred or shaken? The answer: Yes, add bitters before you begin the shaking or stirring process.

The ideal timeframe to take digestive bitters is right before a meal, or about 10 minutes before you start eating, according to Zellner. “Bitters can also be used after a meal, especially if you've eaten a little too much (Thanksgiving dinner, anyone?) or if you're feeling bloated or gassy,” says Zellner.

Bitters are neutral alcohol infused with herbs, spices, fruits, roots, tree bark, and other botanicals. Common ingredients in bitters include orange peel, gentian root, cassia bark, cascarilla, and cinchona bark. co*cktail bitters are different from Italian bitter liqueur or amaro (plural amari).

How bitters work. What do bitter substances do? First and foremost, they promote healthy bowel function. Secondly, they promote blood circulation and digestion, strengthen our immune systems, promote salivation and stimulate fat metabolism in the liver and gallbladder.

Digestion and gut benefits

When your digestion needs a little support, bitters can facilitate stomach acid and act as a digestive aid. This can not only ease indigestion, but also heartburn, nausea, cramping, bloating, and gas.

Can you drink bitters everyday? ›

For the Original Bitters, enjoy 1/4 teaspoon before or after meals up to six times daily for healthy skin and gentle detox. For the Healthy Liver Bitters, enjoy 1/2 teaspoon before or after meals up to four times per day to support normal detox and encourage the healthy production and release of bile.

Angostura Bitters don't need to be refrigerated. Just store them in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight. Ideally, you'll want to put them in a cupboard or pantry with low humidity levels, away from your stovetop or oven.

This means that bitters may act directly as localized hormone triggers to control appetite and other metabolic functions in digestion. These hormonal triggers in the GI can reduce appetite and increase satiety, which leads to a reduced caloric intake and thus potential weight loss.

Herbal bitters are excellent for helping to really kick-start digestion and relieve constipation and the symptoms that can accompany this digestive affliction. One of the most effective ways to manage or prevent constipation is to treat the liver. Bitters trigger the liver to release bile.