Maybe it’s that plunking down a bottle of amaro in the center of the table after a meal makes us feel like we’re in a Fellini film. Or the fact that bartenders are forever in search of the next thing they can use to add dimension to cocktails. Whatever the reason, there’s no cooler booze right now than amaro. The Italian word for "bitter," amaro (plural: amari) represents the collective class of regionally-inspired bittersweet, herbal liqueurs that are traditionally served as a digestivo. They can vary dramatically in style: Fernet-Branca, Averna, Montenegro—all amaro. But one thing holds true across the category: we’re into it.
Okay, So What Is It Exactly?
These Italian-born, aromatic elixirs are made by macerating or infusing bitter botanicals like gentian root with a blend of citrus peels, herbs, spices, barks, and seeds in a neutral spirit or wine base. After being filtered, sugar syrup and water are typically added to lower the proof and then it's typically rested or barrel-aged over a period of time. That a sip of amaro often has, let’s say, cough syrup vibes (in a good way!) serves as a nod to its original use for medicinal purposes.
Here’s How to Drink It
A category this varied can go a million different ways. Try it with soda as an aperitivo (Campari and soda will change your life—and yes, it's also an amaro), neat as a digestivo (try Amaro Lucano), or stirred into any number of cocktails. Or you can try it shaken, with lime, as at Boston’s SRV, which mellows amaro’s bold flavor, making it a great sipper for beginners.
Make This Shot
Combine 2 oz. amaro (such as Amaro Montenegro) and ½ oz. fresh lime juice in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Cover and shake vigorously until shaker is very cold, about 20 seconds. Strain into 4 shot glasses.
Where to Geek Out
These spots stock dozens of diverse, and often rare, varieties:
Abe Fisher (Philadelphia, PA)
Amor y Amargo (New York, NY)
Barnacle (Seattle, WA)
Billy Sunday (Chicago, IL)
The Four Horsemen (Brooklyn, NY)
Lilia (Brooklyn, NY)
LUCA (Lancaster, PA)
Maialino (New York, NY)
Masseria (Washington, D.C.)
The Four Hoursemen (Brooklyn, NY)
USA! USA!
Italian amari reign supreme, but small-batch, regional American amari are suddenly getting exciting. Here are three bottles to seek out:
Amaro Angeleno (Ventura, CA, $35)
As Californian as the Beach Boys, this golden-hued amaro is made with an unaged brandy and a fortified wine base distilled from local grapes and rounded out with herbs and California oranges. Just add Prosecco, soda, and an orange slice for the perfect spritz.
Standard Amaro (Philadelphia, PA, $40)
This collaboration from Philly's Rowhouse Spirits and Standard Tap restaurant is made from distilled Pennsylvania wine, charred local peaches, and bitter orange peels, then aged in rye whiskey barrels. Try it affogato-style, poured over gelato with a shot of warm espresso.
Fernet Michaud (Portland, ME, $35)
Portland's Liquid Riot Bottling Co. makes Maine's first fernet with a blend of 23 all-natural ingredients, which then rests in local blueberry wine barrels. Plays well in cocktails, but best enjoyed neat.
Introducing the 50/50
These equal-part shots originated among bartenders as a shift drink, or as a way to impress industry regulars, but have migrated across the country. At his Brooklyn bar Grand Army, Damon Boelte keeps a double-magnum bottle filled with pre-batched Hard Starts, his signature 50/50 made with Fernet-Branca and Fernet-Branca Menta, for in-the-know guests. Ask for these by name next time you're out:
Ferrari Fernet-Branca/Campari
Maserati Ramazzotti/Mezcal
Zucca Joe Zucca/Coffee Liqueur
Amaro Takes Flight
One of the best ways to sample the diverse spectrum of amaro is through a tasting flight, a trio of 1- 2-ounce amaro pours to spotlight unique styles side by side. At LUCA, an Italian-inspired restaurant in Lancaster, PA, flights come presented on antique serving trays and the ornately labeled bottles are left on the table (which helps to familiarize guests with what they're drinking but also as catnip for Instagram). SRV in Boston celebrates the cuisine of the Veneto region of Italy, and their mix-and-match Amaro Del Giorno experience is a unique way to show off their deep amaro list. Guests can select a three-way combination (or go all in on one) from their amaro list then they're presented alongside the respective bottle neat, on the rocks, and shaken with a splash of lime juice. Each method shows off the range of each amaro with different elements of the mix standing out based on serving method.
Vintage Amaro
The new interest in amaro has many tracking down private collections of amaro from the 1950s to the 1990s (pre-World War II amaro is the white whale of vintage amaro), including many brands no longer in production. Due to the sugar content and the organic nature of the botanicals, amaro can drastically change in the bottle over the years, often becoming more concentrated in richness (on the flip side, just because it's vintage doesn't mean it's good--especially when its become oxidized). In Chicago, you can order a tasting flight to navigate through one of the deepest amaro lists in the country at Billy Sunday, and the Milk Room in the Chicago Athletic Association Hotel flips from a coffee shop during the day to an intimate, reservations-only bar at night where you can taste historically accurate cocktails made with vintage spirits (reading your bill by candlelight helps ease the sticker shock).
Amaro Carts
Contemporary Italian restaurants are making like Mario and navigating the dining room with mobile "Amari(o)" carts stocked with classic and vintage amaro to guide diners through tableside amari flights. You can hail a cart at the following spots:
Vina Enoteca (Palo Alto, CA)
Italienne (New York)
Quince (San Francisco, CA)
Bittersweet Finish
Rather than have amaro with or after dessert, why not make amaro part of dessert? In addition to serving as a digestivo, the sweetness found in many amaro is a natural springboard that also delivers a boozy kick. Austin's Gelateria Gemelli specializes in amaro flights and amaro/gelato pairings along with boozy amaro affogatos (espresso and amaro poured over a scoop of gelato). At the Roman-inspired pizzeria Marta in Manhattan, a Fernet-Branca Menta gelato is a regular flavor on the menu and you can call it a night with a Fernet and Coke gelato float.