Bittercube was, by its co-founder's own admission, built on desperation. Nick Kosevich had won nearly every bartending award in Minneapolis at Town Talk Diner; Ira Koplowitz had spent two years developing house syrups and bitters at Chicago's groundbreaking Violet Hour. In 2009 they quit to open a cocktail bar in Milwaukee, it failed, and rather than crawl back to their old jobs they picked up bartending shifts and poured every dollar into a bitters company — splitting a cheeseburger over a Miller High Life after shifts. During a six-month residency building the cocktail program at Milwaukee's Bacchus, they developed the first six varieties, and the first large batches began macerating in July 2010. The rule that's never changed: everything is handmade from naturally sourced whole ingredients, with no extracts or oils, ever — the pair famously travel with an apothecary of cherry bark, quassia, coriander, and cardamom pods to prove it. The founders split amicably in 2021, with Koplowitz taking full ownership of Bittercube and its Heirloom liqueur brand, and the two still blind-taste every batch together for consistency. The range covers Cherry Bark Vanilla, Orange finished with burnt sugar, Bolivar — a light, earthy homage to Angostura, named for the general whose doctor invented it — Trinity, Blackstrap with molasses, Corazón with cocoa and hot pepper, Ginger Allspice, and Grapefruit Hibiscus. Densely flavored, bartender-built, and the backbone of countless Old Fashioneds across the Midwest.

Browse our full Bittercube collection with fast nationwide shipping delivered straight to your door.