Amari is the plural of amaro (Italian for bitter), which is a category of bittersweet liqueurs primarily served as a digestif. Amari come in a wide variety of styles — but most are built around a certain herb, flower, bark, or nut. A typical amaro will be a blend of multiple botanicals, and most rely on very old, secret, family recipes. While many amari are opaque to the point of being nearly black in color, a whole spectrum of colors represents the amari universe — including clear amari. Amari can be consumed neat, on the rocks, or — increasingly — as part of a cocktail.
Top Amari/Amaro Posts:
Jagermeister Manifest
Cynar 70 Liqueur
Campari and Tempus Fugit Gran Classico
It’s been 9 years since we last took a look at Tempus Fugit Gran Classico. At the time we put it up (perhaps naively) in an impromptu amaro battle against Campari, a spirit with which ...
At this point it feels safe to say that the 2020 holiday season will be unlike any other in our lifetimes. And while in-person gatherings may not be possible, it doesn’t mean that you’re going ...
It took a few decades, but amaro has finally become a thing stateside, with tons of options now available in the U.S., primarily from Italy and France. Not surprisingly, various amari have become a fixture ...
Malört is spiced liquor flavored with wormwood, and is Swedish in origin. Sometime during the 1930’s, innovator/sadist Carl Jeppson thrusted his variation of Malört, a word that translates literally as “moth herb,” upon an unsuspecting ...
Amer Picon (aka Picon Amer) is one of those old-school classic spirits that you read about in dusty old cocktail books and which doesn’t seem to exist anywhere — at least in the U.S. Amer ...
Earlier this year we brought you coverage of California Fernet, a fun spin on the classic Italian style that mixes in both Californian and Swedish sensibilities. Now we’re back to the well with five more ...
Cardamaro is a unique amaro that is made not from grain neutral spirits or grappa but rather from wine. The Milan-based producer, Giovanni Bosca, calls this “a predecessor to the now common styles of amari.” ...
Eda Rhyne Distilling Company in Asheville has a portfolio that currently consists only of different Italian-style liqueurs (at least one whiskey is in the works). The focus on herbal spirits is a bit strange given that ...
Ramazzotti Amaro, or Amaro Ramazzotti, is an Italian amaro based on a recipe “which has been kept secret for over 200 years. 33 ingredients from across the world: herbs, spices, flowers and fruits are combined ...
Outside of Chartreuse, French amari are uncommon in the U.S., but one you’re likely to encounter on the occasional upscale cocktail menu is Suze. (Pronounced basically as it’s written, one syllable.) Originally Swiss (originating in ...