What is oranjebitter?

Oranjebitter is an orange-coloured spirit based on herbs and orange peel, drunk in the Netherlands around King's Day.

The composition differs per maker. What applies to every bottle are the labelling rules that go with Regulation (EU) 2019/787: name, net quantity and alcohol content in percent by volume appear in the same field of vision, in Dutch.

At the Brink in Bathmen, oranjebitter sits among the other Dutch herbal bitters. Feel free to ask what is in a bottle; we will read the label with you.

The sugar content determines the name: from 100 grams of sugar per litre the product is called liqueur; below that it remains a spirit drink.

That limit belongs to the European rules for spirit drinks and is interpreted in this way by the Dutch trade organisation SpiritsNL. For both there is also a lower limit of 15 percent alcohol by volume.

That is why one label says herbal bitter and another says liqueur, while both bottles are called orange bitter.

Oranjebitter owes its place on King's Day to the colour orange, the colour of the royal family.

King’s Day has been on 27 April since 2014, the birthday of King Willem-Alexander. If 27 April falls on a Sunday, King’s Day is celebrated a day earlier. The date is therefore fixed well in advance every year.

Wij zetten de oranjebitter in de weken voor 27 april vooraan in het schap. Bestelt u voor een straatfeest, bel dan even, dan leggen we het klaar. NIX18: wij verstrekken geen alcohol aan mensen onder de 18 jaar.

The peel of the bitter orange is a common flavouring in liqueurs and bitters.

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew describe the bitter orange, Citrus × aurantium, as a hybrid that does not occur in the wild and is cultivated worldwide. Kew writes that the oil from the peel is used as a flavouring in foods and liqueurs and that the peel itself serves as a spice.

Whether a maker uses bitter orange, sweet orange or both is rarely stated on the label. Ask us in the shop; where the producer makes it public, we will look it up for you.

The label states the exact percentage; for the designation spirit drink there is a lower limit of 15 percent alcohol by volume.

Above that limit it differs per bottle and per producer. Because the percentage is different for each bottle, we do not state it in the text but on the label, where under European labelling rules it must be given in percent by volume, in the same field of vision as the name and the net quantity.

If you want to know how strong a particular bottle is, pick it up from the shelf in the shop or give us a quick call. Sales apply only from the age of 18, Article 20 of the Alcohol Act.