Puglia
Veglie, LE
Ancient and modern tastes.
A tasty and pleasant liqueur with over 45 herbs and roots.
Summer is coming and for many Italians it will come the time to choose the destination of holidays, the editorial staff of Amaro Obsession is not different from each of you in this, but when we choose the territory of our long-awaited holidays we combine business with pleasure and we make sure that wherever we decide to go there is a good amaro waiting for us. Looking at the Italian geographic map, our attention could only fall on Puglia and Salento, the most favored choice because the land producing a great Southern style amaro, the Amaro Salento Mazzotta, today on the market with a new expression of the product: the Amarissimo, a very very bitter version for Old School amaro lovers.
Origins
Around the middle of the last century the production of homemade liqueurs and spirits was a very common activity in Salento, an agricultural world where buying distillates was quite unusual. In some bars you could taste, in particular, bitter liqueurs made by craftsmen from the infusion of local herbs and roots and used to spike coffee. A funny anecdote tells that a Franciscan friar of the convent of the Minor Friars of Cupertino, encouraged the bar holders, that spiked coffee with homemade liqueurs, to use them not only for coffee but also for their thoughts and actions! This exhortation was for every customer, who sipped his spiked coffee to think consciously about which side of himself he had to modify to become a better person. Everything was born recently when the Mazzotta family, owner of the company Amaro Salento, after a thorough study and motivated by love for their land, has intended to retrace the ancient and homemade tradition by creating a completely new and modern version of a bitter liqueur that includes over 45 herbs, roots (including Aloe Vera) peel, bark, seeds, flowers and rhizomes with a low alcohol content (35 %). The result is a tasty and pleasant liqueur to be preferably served chilled or in creative cocktails. The recipe of Amaro Salento is secret. It is a synthesis of ancient typical formulas of the most genuine tradition of Salento, expertly prepared and refined in order to reach a balanced and harmonious elixir, tasty and pleasing to every palates.
The Plants
Most of the plants possess ancient virtues and for this reason they are used in a variable amount depending on their use. Many plants used for Amaro Salento are defined “healing herbs” because they contain active ingredients with digestive properties. It is also very important the way they are collected and conserved in order to maintain their best properties. The plants used for the preparation of infusions must also maintain their aromatic properties. The most suitable extraction technique allows to better express the complexity of their mixtures previously selected. The plants used to produce Amaro Salento are accompanied by an analysis report (microbiological, chemical: pesticides, mycotoxins, heavy metals ..); subsequently they undergo compliance checks in laboratory and finally they are stored in a special warehouse.
Preparation
The preparation of Amaro Salento consists in weighing and mixing the plants according to the ancient recipe. They are later poured into a solution of water and alcohol and macerated for 2 weeks. After this period the mixture is pressed and the liquid collected is mixed with some vanilla extracts, essential oils and natural flavoring substances that strengthen and customize the product. It follows a phase called “ageing”: is a waiting period during which the extract softens and achieves its aromatic harmony by depositing the fibers. At the end of this phase the product is ready to be used for the preparation of the final drink that must be left to age a few weeks to achieve its best flavor.
Matteo Zamberlan
