Amari
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
We’re taking another spin with Utah-based Ogden’s Own Distillery and looking at perhaps its most intriguing product, an herbal amaro called Underground. The nose immediately evokes a likable, Jagermeister-like elements of raisins, mulling spices, cardamom, and a significant licorice character. The palate continues the theme, pouring on the licorice and giving it a spin via…
“Created by Geijer Glögg Inc.,” California Fernet is an amaro with a story, and not just because the dog is drinking a glass. Let’s hear it: Geijer Spirits is a San Francisco based beverage company producing hand-crafted spirits under the “California” brand that blends Scandinavian tradition with California flavors. Martin Geijer founded Geijer Spirits and…
Campari needs to be a standby of every bar — commercial or home. The classic, bright red aperitif is intensely bitter yet delightfully fragrant and flavorful, making possible all manner of intriguing cocktail combinations. And now there is a new version of Campari: Campari Cask Tales, a version finished in bourbon barrels. How about some…
We first encountered Roulaison Rum — pot-distilled in New Orleans from 100% Louisiana molasses — back in 2017. Since then, the company has significantly expanded its offerings from its single white rum offering to a quartet of them. Today we round out our coverage by looking at the three additional products in the lineup. Roulaison…
Martini & Rossi is a staple of the mass market vermouth world, and now the brand is moving upmarket with the launch of its Riserva Speciale line. The collection includes two vermouths — Ambrato Vermouth, a dry white vermouth, and Rubino Vermouth, a sweet red expression — and a red, bitter liqueur in the Campari…
Portland-based Townshend’s Distillery is one hell of a unique craft producer. How so? They’re the only distillery (in the world, perhaps) to make spirits from alcohol produced by the fermentation of tea for kombucha. You can buy the kombucha, but what’s really interesting are the spirits, which include various liqueurs and gins, but which are heavily…
La Valdotaine is an Italian alpine distillery with a rich portfolio of spirits, liqueurs, and fortified wines. While the operation dates back to 1947, the products produced here are only just now available in the U.S., thanks to importer A. Hardy. Just two of La Valdotaine’s products are being made available at this time, a…
The eclectic, mountaintop city of Asheville, North Carolina has long been a mecca for craft beer in the southern United States. Craft brewing behemoths like Sierra Nevada and New Belgium have even set up East Coast operations there, alongside more than 40 other, smaller breweries. But there’s more to Beer City USA than beer, as…
Cherry liqueur has not traditionally received a standing ovation in the cocktail world. While liqueurs like Peter Heering have their place, unless you’re making a Singapore Sling they’re hardly a go-to ingredient. As such, most cherry liqueurs tend to gather dust on the back bar, all but ignored. Cerasum, from the mad artisans at Don…
Jagermeister continues its slow grind toward premium status with this, its second line extension following Jagermeister Spice, which arrived in 2013. Jagermeister Manifest is a high-end herbal liqueur with a distinctly different approach than the dark-as-night, licorice whip of classic Jager. We had the opportunity to sample the new Jagermeister expression to see if it’s…