Happy Monday, everyone! I’ve been trying to share more about my life here on the blog. While today’s post is not a sponsored one (or even necessarily retro), I just wanted to shine the spotlight on a delicious liqueur that I’ve been enjoying over the last few months. Are you familiar with amaro, which is a word for Italian herbal liqueur? There are many to choose from, and I finally bought a bottle of Ramazzotti this past weekend. A good-sized bottle is under $20, and it’s perfect for drinking as is, serving on the rocks, topping off with sparkling water or incorporating into a cocktail.
As you can see on the bottle above, the recipe for Ramazzotti was created in 1815. It’s a secret family recipe, so you can’t duplicate it exactly, but here’s the basic idea: made from 33 different herbs and spices, there are many flavors to enjoy in this one liqueur, including cardamom, cinnamon and orange peel notes. That’s why this drink is often garnished with an orange peel. It also has a dark, cola-like flavor that creates a certain familiarity and smoothness, despite everything else going on. Perfection!
Some also enjoy the liqueur with a splash of lemon. I recently had a flight of amari (the plural of amaro) at my favorite Italian food restaurant, and each selection was served straight in a wine glass. That’s the beauty of this liqueur. You can serve it up however you see fit. Sip it with dessert as is, serve it along with your favorite Italian meal, or get fancy and mix it into a cocktail like this one, or one of these.
There’s nothing like a liqueur that’s just as spectacular alone as in a mixed drink. And since it’s affordable, you can have it on hand for special dinners, or even parties such as your Oscar night fete.
Hope your week is off to a great start…
Sieht sehr lecker aus und tolle Bilder! Erinnert mich an ein alkoholfreies Getränk das bei den italienischen Eltern meines Freundes immer zuhause steht, auch irgendwie nach Cola schmeckend aber leicht bitter.
LG Faye
Thank you for your kind words, Faye! I totally agree about the cola taste, but a bit more bitter. Thank you again for your comment!
Kate, your mom told me that our daughter, and you, have a shared interest in amari! Amazing. Really enjoyed your post about Ramozzotti! You mentioned having a flight of Amari at your favorite Italian restaurant in Austin – we have always felt that Austin had a dearth of good Italian restaurants, could you share the one that had the amari flight? Might be fun to visit.
warmly,
Sandra
Hi Sandra! It’s wonderful to hear from you! My favorite Austin Italian restaurant is Olive and June–they have an entire amari section on their beverage menu. I can’t wait to try more of them. Mom mentioned your daughter’s interest in amari, and I hope she has fun traveling and sampling! Thank you again for your comment.
Thanks for sharing, Kate, we hope to get to O&J for a happy hour soon, and the aforementioned Amari flight! Best wishes,
Sandra