Fee Brothers Old Fashion Bitters 5oz glass bottle

Fee Brothers has been producing bitters and bar essentials in Rochester, New York since 1864, a family-owned company that has stayed in continuous operation while other historic bitters houses disappeared. The company remains one of only a small number of pre-craft cocktail era producers still manufacturing in the United States, with all of its bitters made vegan and gluten free.

Old Fashion Aromatic Bitters is notable for using real angostura bark as a primary bittering agent, a genuine ingredient that few other commercially available bitters actually contain despite the name association. The formula combines that bark with gentian root, citrus oils, and a blend of warm baking spices, bottled at 17.5% alcohol by volume, giving it a spicier and more assertive profile than many standard aromatic bitters on the market.

Cinnamon and allspice dominate the nose immediately, layered with cassia bark and cardamom, while gentian root and angostura bark ground the aroma with a subtle bitter edge. On the palate, warm spice and caramel sweetness lead before settling into a balanced, moderately bitter finish. It was built with the Old Fashioned in mind, though it works just as well in a Manhattan or a Toronto, where its cinnamon-forward character plays nicely against darker amaro notes.