That was St-Germain, a lightly sweet elderflower liqueur that launched in 2007 and then broke and spread across the drinks scene like a slow-moving tsunami. A mix of the liqueur, champagne and sparkling water garnished with a lemon twist, its being raised by tipplers around the world to toast a force in the cocktail and spirits world and his most famous creation. It pairs well with almost every spirit, making it incredibly versatile behind the bar. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, His death was confirmed Thursday by the New York Times. St-Germain, which was inspired by the neighborhoods essence, took on the name in hopes of encapsulating the same energy. St-Germain (now wholly owned by Bacardi), an artisanal French liqueur made from fresh elderflower blossoms. Launched in 2007 by third-generation distiller Robert J. Cooper, St-Germain elderflower liqueur launched an elderflower craze that would span the next decade and a half and revived a dormant liqueur industry. Inspired by his floral-scented success, Robert Cooper was keen to revive previously popular brands from hibernation. The area, which contains the iconic Luxembourg Gardens and a multitude of art galleries, was once home to creative greats like cubist painter Pablo Picasso, poet Charles Baudelaire, and novelist Ernest Hemingway. Robert Cooper was a businessman who built his company on humility, positive thinking, collaboration, a creative approach to problem solving. "What Drinks Should You Use St Germain Liqueur In? He graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a bachelors degree in English and creative writing. He was also a terrific. Best Match Powered by Whitepages Premium AGE 70s Robert Germain Leesburg, FL Aliases Robert Thomas St Germaine Robert Thomas St Germain View Full Report Addresses In order to activate this feature, simply add the URL of your blog, and the URL of 3 categories from your blog, to the input boxes below. He was 39. The younger Cooper struck gold with the perfect storm of professional curiosity and timing, launching St-Germain in 2007. Something went wrong. He was an avid surfer and loved collecting esoteric wines from obscure regions. The Times notes that it became so ubiquitous, some took to calling it "bartender's ketchup." The sweet spirit is made from hand-picked elderflower blossoms that only bloom for a month each spring in France; it has been heralded as one of the most influential new . [5] Now owned by Bacardi Limited, St-Germain is one of the most commonly used liqueurs in the world and even garnered a host of media attention after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their lemon elderflower wedding cake. Rob Cooper St-Germain - YouTube Bacardi Limited acquires St-Germain liqueur. Mr. Cooper went on to return to circulation bygone bar ingredients like Creme Yvette, a berry-violet liqueur, and Hochstadters Slow & Low, a form of the common 19th century drink rock and rye. The elderflower liqueur was an instant success, and chances are that if you like cocktails, you've probably had one that included St-Germain. Robert Cooper was also a master of predicting trends and recognized an emerging excitement for rye whiskey. In addition launching his own spirits brand, the Cooper Spirits Co., Cooper was known for hosting bartender exchange programs between New York City and San Francisco, as well as the annual Jazz Age lawn party on New York City's Governor's Island. He grew his spirits portfolio into the whiskey category with Lock Stock & Barrel, a fine 13-year-old straight rye. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. They wanted something different they could work with that had integrity. Thus, Cooper credits the two bars with skyrocketing the liqueurs success. The next issue of NP Posted will soon be in your inbox. Already connected with a vast network of liquor and liqueur producers due to his familial relationships, Cooper decided to explore the possibility of creating his own elderflower liqueur. St-Germain has grown to become one of the most valuable bottles in a bartenders arsenal. Founded byChristine Sloan Stoddard. After all, if youre a chef, do you want to build your reputation on your use of ketchup? If you are a Home delivery print subscriber, unlimited online access is. Mr. Cooper attributed his success in part to timing. In the wake of that development, Cooper went out on his own to start Cooper Spirits and launch St-Germain. Launched in 2007 by third-generation distiller Robert J. Cooper, St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur kickstarted an elderflower craze that would span the next decade and a half and revived a sleepy liqueur industry. Activates category 1 section on 'Solar' page layout (e.g., https://www.mysite.com/blog/category/dog.html). Robert St Germain We found 100+ records for Robert St Germain in FL, VA and 33 other states. This distilled beveragerelated article is a stub. [3] [4] The brand was named after Saint-Germain-des-Prs, and the bottle shape is influenced by Art Deco motifs associated with the Belle poque history of this area. St-Germain creator Robert Cooper shares why he thinks the brand will truly be an international brand as. We encountered an issue signing you up. Liqueurs had been a near-defunct category in the United States, but the intrigue of St-Germain inspired many drinkmakers to delve into neglected European liqueurs such as Chartreuse and various amari to see what theyd been missing. In 2012, he sold St-Germain to Bacardi for what was rumored to be a seven-figure sum. With St-Germain, many Americans encountered the flavour for the first time. [8], In 2016, Robert Cooper died at the age of 39. That young entrepreneur was Robert J. Cooper, who sadly passed away this week at the early age of 39. Cooper was born into a family with a rich history in the spirits business, but instead of. Mr. Cooper proved to be a savvy marketer. Cocktail bartenders, hungry for new ingredients and flavors to work with, tossed it into every other new drink. It was a little bit pear, a little bit litchi, a little bit like youd stuck your head into a roadside hedgerow and inhaled air thick with early-summer honeysuckle. To print a list of all the drinks in which St-Germain appeared over the years would probably require at least the full Food section. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings. He would have turned 40 on August 3. Please enter a valid email and try again. I'm just a nice lady who likes cocktails and traveling. St-Germain, packaged in a striking Art Deco bottle, landed like a thunderclap in the then-burgeoning cocktail world. He was generous with his time and with his recipe for a new drink, the St-Germain cocktail. Unauthorized distribution, transmission or republication strictly prohibited. Chris Pleasance For Dailymail.com The comments below have not been moderated, By The sum was not revealed, but Mr. Cooper said it was more than I expected to see in a lifetime.. Cooper, whose family owns Charles Jacquin et Cie, a Philadelphia-based spirits distiller and producer founded in 1884, left his family . If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. Bacardi Limited acquires St-Germain liqueur. Cooper, who later went on to reintroduce several 'dead' liqueurs back to the market. When Cooper responded by leaving the family business behind, his father allegedly told him, Ill hire you back in a year when you fail. As his luck would have it, he did not fail. The partnership, which was finalized in 1933, helped transform Jacquins into one of the worlds leading producers of liqueurs and cordials. Cooper died at home in Santa Barbara, California, on Monday according to Robyn Greene, the senior vice president of marketing and innovation at his spirits firm. By his account, his father, Norton J. Cooper, gave him the cold shoulder when he suggested creating an elderflower liqueur like the ones he had encountered in bars in London. Cocktail bartenders, hungry for new ingredients and flavors to work with, tossed it into every other new drink. At the same time St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur was first hitting markets, cocktails and cocktail bars were undergoing a massive renaissance in major cities like New York. Asked how much money he had received, Cooper said it was 'more than I expected to see in a lifetime'. The drink itself is made from flowers of elderberry plants that grow in France and bloom for just one month of the year. St-Germain quickly became a huge success, favored by bartenders and customers. 2014 - 2023 VinePair Inc. Made In NYC, Bartenders: Now's Your Chance To Experience Barbados, Fizzy Business: Why Breweries Are Betting on Hop Water as a Non-Alcoholic Option, The Cocktail College Podcast: How to Make the Perfect Americano, 8 Things You Should Know About St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur | VinePair, https://vinepair.com/articles/ntk-st-germain/, wbs_cat Spirit, wbs_type Liqueur, wbs_brand St. Germain, artisan liqueurs, liqueur, need to know, The Cocktail College Podcast: How to Make the Perfect El Presidente | VinePair, https://vinepair.com/cocktail-college/el-presidente/, wbs_cat Spirit, wbs_type Liqueur, wbs_type Rum, wbs_type Vermouth, Cocktail College, cocktail recipes, The VinePair Podcast. Crme Yvettes production halted in 1969 but relaunched to the liqueur market in 2010. Stir gently to incorporate.2. He curried favor with influential young mixologists, sponsored cross-country bartender exchanges in which New York bartenders would guest-bartend at San Francisco bars, and vice versa, hired prominent bartenders as brand ambassadors and held an annual Jazz Age lawn party on Governors Island. Mr. Cooper was a scion of the family that owns Charles Jacquin et Cie, an old cordials and liqueurs house based in Philadelphia. St-Germain was invented by distiller Robert Cooper and launched in 2007 by Cooper Spirits Co, founded in 2006 and headquartered in New York. It had behind it the passion and energy of Robert Cooper, who at the time was only in his early 30s. PDT and Death & Co, two prominent New York cocktail bars, opened around the same time he introduced St-Germain. They wanted something different they could work with that had integrity. Cooper came from a family that has been making beverages since 1884, when Charles Jacquin et Cie Inc. of which his father is president was founded in Philadelphia. Read more about cookies here. It was more [money] than I expected to see in a lifetime, Cooper admitted at the time. In 2006 Cooper introduced the burgeoning cocktail industry to his new liqueur and it quickly became known as 'bartenders' ketchup' because of its popularity. In broader terms, it helped resuscitate the dormant liqueur business. He didnt fail. While St Germain was named by the likes of the Times as one of the most influential drinks of the decade, it also helped to reintroduce enthusiasm in liqueurs to the cocktail market. Cooper was quick to credit bartenders for the success of the spirit, and rightfully so: They fell hard for St-Germain, which can elevate a mediocre sparkling wine, complement the tang of fresh citrus and blend beautifully with the botanicals of gin. That company introduced the raspberry liqueur Chambord domestically and later sold it to Brown-Forman. Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. [9] A second iteration, Fleuriste St-Germain, opened in New York City in August 2021, in collaboration with ballet dancer James Whiteside and director Laura Kim. Let us raise a glass to his legacy. Sad news for the spirits world today: The creator of the wildly popular St. Germain elderflower liqueur, Robert J. Cooper, died Monday at the age of 39 in Santa Monica, Calif., according to. . Note: You can hide this box under "Theme>Theme Options>Automation [Editor Only]". In 2007, Cooper launched the elderflower liqueur, similar to ones he had seen in London, and by 2008, bartenders across the country considered it a staple of their repertoire. The flowers are all picked in the mornings, when temperatures are at their lowest. Robert Cooper is survived by his wife, Katie, and their two children William Thor and Charlotte Rose. His death was confirmed by Robyn Greene, the senior vice president for marketing and innovation at the Cooper Spirits Company, who said the cause was not immediately known. Cooper Spirits sold St-Germain to spirits giant Bacardi in 2013, but Cooper continued to work with Bacardi as a brand guardian, and his company brought back several other historic spirits, including Hochstadters Slow & Low (a bottled rock and rye cocktail) and Crme Yvette, a mixed-berry liqueur. This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Even if you already have a home page, you'll need to create a new one since Solar needs a blank page to automatically pull and display your blog posts in the magazine layout. Brown disagrees: Cooper worked incredibly hard, he says, and would have been successful regardless. This practice allows producers to ensure that the elderflower blossoms are only just beginning to open, meaning the aromas and flavors of the buds will be at their most prominent. St-Germain was created by Robert Cooper, the son of Chambord inventor Norton "Sky" Cooper. Robert J. Cooper, whose unusual elderflower liqueur, St-Germain, introduced in 2007, was so completely embraced by the cocktail community that it became known as "bartender's ketchup," died. Rob Cooper, founder of Cooper Spirits Co. and creator of the wildly popular St. Germain elderflower liqueur, died April 25 in Santa Barbara, CA, according to reports. Robert J. Cooper, the creator of St-Germain, the elderflower liqueur so ubiquitous that it eventually became known as "bartender's ketchup," has died at the age of 39. They wanted something different they could work with that had integrity. In fact, St-Germains unique coloring does not come from any artificial additives, but instead is a result of the pollen from each bud blending with the liqueurs liquid components. Its nothing to do with how good the product is, just the way the market works. Oops. He also reintroduced Hochstadters Slow & Low to the whiskey market in 2010. In 2012 drinks giant Bacardi came knocking and bought St Germain for an undisclosed sum. Cooper, whose family owns Charles Jacquin et Cie, a Philadelphia-based spirits distiller and producer founded in 1884, left his family business to pursue the creation of St-Germain, an idea dismissed by his father, Norton J. Cooper. His death was confirmed by Robyn Greene, the senior vice president of marketing and innovation at the Cooper Spirits Co., who said the cause was not immediately known. Fort Collins. Beloved by bartenders everywhere, St-Germains delicate floral notes and natural flavors of pear and honeysuckle make the liqueur a savvy addition to a number of cocktails as well as a great stand-alone aperitif in simple spritzes. Cooper died April 25 in California at the age of 39, leaving behind a wife and two children; the cause of his death has not been released. It's no understatement to call him a genius or pioneer (as other. The cause of death is unknown. The native New Yorker passed away Monday in Santa Barbara, Calif. His death was confirmed Thursday by the New York Times, though the cause was not known. Robert Cooper was a businessman who built his company on humility, positive thinking, collaboration, a creative approach to problem solving. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. [2], St-Germain was created by distiller Robert Cooper, son of Norton Cooper, the owner of Charles Jacquin et Cie, after trying an elderflower-based cocktail at a London bar in 2001. (His older brother John, also independently, brought the popular ginger liqueur Domaine de Canton to market.) Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. Staying true to his legacy of liqueurs, he also reintroduced Crme Yvette, a berry-violet liqueur, from his family's Charles Jacquin et Cie imprint. [5] St-Germain was launched in 2007 by Cooper Spirits Co,[6] a company founded 2006 and headquartered in New York. Mr. Cooper attributed his success in part to timing. . A 1994 graduate of Aspen High School, and a former, two-year member of the U.S. By his account, his father, Norton J. Cooper, gave him the cold shoulder when he suggested creating an elderflower liqueur like the ones he had encountered in bars in London. Obama whines to students about being 'picked on' by the pr Canadian teacher with size-Z prosthetic breasts placed on paid leave, Buster Murdaugh got 'very drunk' with dad 2 months after mom, brother murdered: source, I'm a professional cleaner ditch these 4 household products immediately, Tom Sandoval speaks out on Raquel Leviss affair: I deserve your anger, Shoeless Ariana Madix awkwardly tries to avoid cheating Tom Sandoval, Prince Harry was scared to lose Meghan Markle after fight that led to therapy, Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant allegedly flashes gun at a strip club, Tom Sizemore And The Dangerous Burden of Desperation, Ariana Madix, Tom Sandoval have awkward moment amid cheating scandal. St-Germain was created by Robert Cooper, the son of Chambord inventor Norton Sky Cooper. [3][4] The brand was named after Saint-Germain-des-Prs, and the bottle shape is influenced by Art Deco motifs associated with the Belle poque history of this area. Robert James Cooper was born on Aug. 3, 1976, in Manhattan. ST-GERMAIN COCKTAIL A rare modern classic that comes from the company behind its titular ingredient, the elderflower liqueur St-Germain, this cocktail is refreshing and floral, a perfect spring drink. Access all of our expanded, online-only, subscriber exclusive opinion writing. Sure, Brown acknowledged but the most popular Beatles songs probably get a backlash, too. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. Robert J. Cooper launched the popular spirit back in 2007. Kylian Mbappe became Paris Saint-Germain's all-time top scorer with his 201st goal for the club in their 4-2 win over Nantes in Ligue 1 on Saturday.PSG had also blown a two-goal lead in their last . We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. The sudden death of the St-Germain founder was confirmed by Robyn Greene, senior vice president at family-owned business, the Cooper Spirits Company, in a statement to the New York Times. interview. If your site doesn't have a Weebly "Blog" page, then create a new "Blog" page. 21:10 EST 28 Apr 2016 The cause of death was not immediately known. St-Germain was created by Robert Cooper, the son of Chambord inventor Norton "Sky" Cooper. [10], The spirit won a Grand Gold Medal at the Monde Selection in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2012 and the "Chairman's Award" in the Liqueur category at the Ultimate Spirits Challenge 2010.[11][12]. Born in South Bend, IN he was a veteran of the U.S. Navy, as a Data Systems Tech. Mr. Cooper proved to be a savvy marketer. The year 2016 has been a series of gut-punches. You can do this by clicking on "Pages" at the top, click on the "+" icon and select "Blog Page". And St-Germain served as the rising tide that lifted all bottles: Theres little doubt that its popularity helped escort older, obscure liqueurs back into the glass. It was a good product, and people would have picked it up in time, but Rob was a constant presence. Robert J. Cooper, the creator of St-Germain, the elderflower liqueur so ubiquitous that it eventually became known as "bartender's ketchup," has died at the age of 39. Nearly a decade ago, as the cocktail renaissance was gaining steam, a lot of drinks started developing a particular flavour note. But success was not guaranteed. The Cooper family as a whole has been heavily involved in the spirits industry since the early 1900s when Maurice J. Cooper, a merchant of imported food and beverage, partnered with the Charles Jacquin et Cie cordial business. Junior National Snowboarding team, Rob Cooper joined the family business in 1999, just after finishing his college career at the University of California, Santa Barbara.