Aromatics & Essences

Rose Water

Rose water is what collects when rose petals are distilled with water, and a bottle of the traditional sort holds neither alcohol nor sugar. Bottles labelled rose water can also be concentrated flavourings made with alcohol, so the ingredients list matters. In a cocktail it works as scent: a few drops in the shaker, or a fine mist over the top.

Quick Facts

ABV0%

Legal categoryFood

OriginMiddle East, South Asia and the Mediterranean

Flavour Strengthvery bold

SeasonYear-round

Our keeping timeSix to twelve months once opened for the best aroma; longer in the fridge.

Storage

Store tightly sealed in a cool, dark place away from heat and light. We keep it in the fridge after opening to preserve the aroma. Use a dropper or dasher for controlled dosing.

Allergens

None of the 14 listed allergens.

The ingredient

About Rose Water

Flavour Profile

Primary Flavours

Rose petalWhite floralSoft bitternessPerfumed sweetness (aromatic only)

Tasting Notes

Highly fragrant and floral on the nose with a soft, lingering rose character. Intense aromatically, but subtle on the palate when used correctly.

A distilled water, or a flavouring

Rose water starts as petals distilled with water, the fragrant water that comes over being bottled on its own. Steenbergs double-distils its petals, one to one with water, and says no alcohol is involved. A second kind shares the shelf: flavourings that dissolve rose oil in alcohol and glycerin, sold under the same name and many times stronger. Read the ingredients before deciding on a dose.

Rose water beside orange flower water

The two flower waters used in drinks

Distilled from

Rose water: Rose petals
Orange flower water: Bitter orange blossom

Alcohol (traditional kind)

Rose water: None
Orange flower water: None

On the nose

Rose water: Sweet, perfumed rose
Orange flower water: Fresh blossom, a citrus edge

Starting dose

Rose water: Two or three drops, or a spray
Orange flower water: Three dashes in a Ramos Gin Fizz

Our recipes

Rose water: None yet
Orange flower water: Ramos Gin Fizz

	Rose water	Orange flower water
Distilled from	Rose petals	Bitter orange blossom
Alcohol (traditional kind)	None	None
On the nose	Sweet, perfumed rose	Fresh blossom, a citrus edge
Starting dose	Two or three drops, or a spray	Three dashes in a Ramos Gin Fizz
Our recipes	None yet	Ramos Gin Fizz

The two are made the same way and dosed in the same small amounts, but they do not swap: orange flower water is fresher and lighter, rose water sweeter and heavier.

Drops in the shaker, or a spray on top

A few drops shaken into a gin or vodka sour scent the whole drink. For aroma without flavour, fill an atomiser and mist the surface; each spray is about 0.1ml, so the rose meets the nose and barely reaches the palate. Either way, start low. Rose turns soapy faster than most flavours.

Food grade, small, and kept cool

Buy rose water sold as food, not as a skin toner, and in a small bottle: at a few drops a drink, a large one takes a long time to use up. The fridge keeps the scent longer once it is open, and the keeping time in the facts panel is a guide to when it fades.

Using it

Using Rose Water

Usage

A few drops shaken into a gin or vodka sour, or one or two sprays from an atomiser over the finished drink. A rose flavouring made with alcohol needs a single drop at most to start. We have no recipe with it yet.

Pro Tip

Spray rose water over the drink rather than into it when you want scent without flavour. A single spray is about 0.1ml, and it sits on the surface where the nose meets it first.

Top Tips

Buy rose water from the baking or world-food shelf. Cosmetic rose waters are not sold as food.
Start with two drops, taste, then add more. Too much tastes of soap or perfume.
For aroma without flavour, mist it over the drink from an atomiser instead of shaking it in.
Check whether it is a distilled water or an alcohol-based flavouring; the second is far stronger.

Possible Substitutions

Orange Flower Water: Orange blossom instead of rose: fresher and lighter

Production Method

Petals are distilled with water and the fragrant water is bottled; Steenbergs double-distils, petals to water one to one, with no alcohol. Some rose flavourings instead combine alcohol, glycerin and rose oil.

Go further

More to explore

Common Questions

What is rose water?

The fragrant water left from distilling rose petals. Persian, Middle Eastern and South Asian cooks use it in sweets and drinks. In a cocktail it reads as the smell of roses more than as a flavour, and a few drops are enough to notice once shaken in.

Does rose water contain alcohol?

Not the traditional sort: Steenbergs says it uses no alcohol at all in making its rose water. Others are flavourings with alcohol at the top of the ingredients, Nielsen-Massey’s among them, and far more concentrated. If alcohol matters to you or a guest, the ingredients list answers it.

How much rose water should I put in a cocktail?

Start with two or three drops of a distilled rose water in a shaken drink, or one or two sprays over the top, then taste. A concentrated, alcohol-based rose flavouring needs only one drop to begin. Past a small amount the drink tastes of soap or perfume, and there is no taking it back out.

Can I drink cosmetic rose water?

Use rose water sold as food, from the baking or world-food shelves, for drinks. Rose waters sold as skin toners are cosmetics, not food, so keep them out of the glass. A food-grade bottle lists its ingredients and carries a date mark, like any other food.

Should I spray rose water or add it to the shaker?

It depends what you want. Shaken in, a few drops flavour the whole drink lightly. Sprayed from an atomiser over the finished drink, about 0.1ml a spray, it stays on the surface as scent and barely touches the taste. Spraying is easier to control.

Rose water or orange flower water?

Both are flower waters with no alcohol in their traditional form. Rose smells sweeter and more perfumed; orange blossom is fresher, with a citrus edge. Our Ramos Gin Fizz is written for orange flower water. Use rose water where you want a rose drink, not as a stand-in.

Does rose water go off?

It loses scent before it spoils. In our experience the fridge after opening helps; either way, we plan on six to twelve months once opened, go by the bottle’s own date, and throw it out if it smells sour or turns cloudy. A small bottle suits a few drops a drink.

Sources.

Correct as of 16 October 2026.

Steenbergs, “Organic Rose Water”.
Nielsen-Massey, “Rose Water”.

Make something

Made with Rose Water

Often Used With

Updated 16 October 2026

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