Clear Creek Cranberry Liqueur 375ML

Clear Creek Cranberry Liqueur 375ML is a craft cranberry liqueur made from Oregon coast cranberries, bottled at 19.5% ABV (39 proof) in a 375ml format. Produced by the James Beard Award–nominated Clear Creek Distillery in Hood River, Oregon, this expression captures the natural tartness of ripe cranberries without leaning on excessive sweetness—an approach that has earned the distillery widespread critical acclaim, including recognition from The New York Times Magazine and Karen MacNeil's The Wine Bible.

Quick Facts: ABV: 19.5%  |  Origin: Hood River, Oregon, USA  |  Style: Cranberry Fruit Liqueur  |  Distillery: Clear Creek Distillery

Production & Heritage

Clear Creek Distillery, based in Hood River, Oregon, built its reputation on old-world European distilling techniques adapted to Pacific Northwest fruit. The cranberries used in this liqueur are sourced from the bogs near Bandon and Port Orford along the southern Oregon coast—large, intensely flavored berries prized for their deep pigmentation and bold character. The production process involves pressing juice directly from the fruit and lightly sweetening it, with an emphasis on preserving the cranberry's natural tart and bitter qualities rather than masking them. Fresh water from Mount Hood's springs plays a role in the distillery's broader operations, and the same commitment to local sourcing that defines their acclaimed eaux-de-vie carries through to this liqueur.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Bright, tangy cranberry dominates from the first nosing, followed by subtle hints of natural sweetness and a faint herbal undercurrent. The scent is clean and immediately evocative of fresh-picked fruit.

Taste: The entry is juicy and tart, with ripe cranberry flavor hitting immediately. At mid-palate, a gentle sweetness emerges just enough to balance the fruit's natural acidity, creating a supple, rounded mouthfeel. The cranberry character remains honest and unembellished throughout—no artificial candy-like qualities intrude.

Finish: Crisp and refreshing, with lingering tartness that stays bright without turning sour. The finish is medium in length, leaving a clean cranberry note that invites repeated tasting.

How to Drink Clear Creek Cranberry

Served chilled and neat, this liqueur showcases its fruit character at full intensity—the tart-sweet balance is compelling on its own, especially as a digestif. It also excels in cocktails where genuine cranberry flavor is essential. A Cosmopolitan made with this liqueur replaces generic triple sec and cranberry juice with a single, more authentic ingredient. In a Cranberry Spritz, combine it with sparkling wine and a lemon twist for a low-proof aperitif with real fruit depth. A Cranberry Sidecar—pairing this liqueur with brandy and fresh lemon juice—plays the tartness against citrus for a sharp, balanced cocktail.

Best For

• Autumn and holiday entertaining where cranberry flavors anchor the seasonal table
• Gifting to a craft spirits enthusiast who values artisan production and local sourcing
• Building a home bar focused on high-quality, fruit-forward modifiers
• Hosting Thanksgiving or winter dinner parties with cocktails that match the menu

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Clear Creek Cranberry taste like? It tastes like fresh, ripe cranberries—tart, juicy, and only lightly sweetened, with none of the artificial candy quality found in mass-market alternatives. The cranberry flavor is honest and dominant from start to finish.

How does Clear Creek Cranberry compare to mass-produced cranberry liqueurs? Clear Creek uses whole-pressed Oregon coast cranberries and minimal added sweetness, resulting in a tarter, more fruit-forward profile. Most commercial cranberry liqueurs rely on higher sugar content and artificial flavoring, which produce a sweeter, less nuanced product.

Is Clear Creek Cranberry good for cocktails? It is an excellent cocktail ingredient, particularly in drinks like the Cosmopolitan or Cranberry Spritz, where its genuine tartness and lower sugar level add complexity that sweetened cranberry juice alone cannot achieve.

Where is Clear Creek Cranberry made? Clear Creek Cranberry Liqueur is produced at Clear Creek Distillery in Hood River, Oregon, using cranberries grown in the bogs near Bandon and Port Orford on the southern Oregon coast.

What foods pair well with Clear Creek Cranberry? Roasted turkey or duck benefit from the liqueur's tartness echoing classic cranberry sauce. Sharp aged cheddar creates a compelling sweet-tart contrast. Dark chocolate truffles balance the fruit's acidity with cocoa richness. Brie or Camembert with the liqueur drizzled over top highlights the cranberry's brightness. Pecan pie served alongside a small pour offers a nutty-sweet counterpoint to the tart fruit.

What sizes does Clear Creek Cranberry come in? The standard format available is a 375ml bottle, which is a common half-bottle size for specialty liqueurs.

Is Clear Creek Cranberry worth the price? Clear Creek Cranberry positions as a premium artisan liqueur, reflecting small-batch production, locally sourced Oregon cranberries, and the distillery's decades-long reputation for quality. For those seeking authentic fruit character over generic sweetness, it represents strong value within the craft liqueur category.

Why Clear Creek Cranberry?

Clear Creek Distillery has received nine James Beard Award nominations and has been praised by The New York Times Magazine and Karen MacNeil's The Wine Bible as producing some of the finest fruit spirits in the world. That same exacting approach—pressing whole fruit for juice, sweetening sparingly, and letting the raw ingredient speak—defines this cranberry liqueur. The use of large, intensely pigmented cranberries from Oregon's southern coast gives it a depth of color and flavor that sets it apart from industrially produced alternatives. For anyone who takes fruit liqueurs seriously, this is a benchmark expression of what cranberry can be when the fruit, not the sugar, leads.