Amaretto
Amaretto is a flavor for originally from Italy coming liqueurs with a nutty aroma of marzipan recalls. Most amaretto liqueurs have an alcohol content between 20 and 30 percent by volume . In German-speaking countries, liqueurs with a similar taste had been known as Persiko since the 18th century .
Word origin
The term amaretto is a diminutive of the Italian word amaro , which means 'bitter'. Originally, bitter almonds ( Italian mandorla amara ) or apricot kernels and sometimes also sweet almonds were used for flavoring.
Manufacturing
Amaretto is not defined as a generic term in the EU Spirits Regulation, so its production only has to comply with the general regulations for spirits and liqueurs . In this respect, “Amaretto” is only part of the product name or a reference to the taste; the official sales name is “Liqueur”. The requirements include an alcohol content of at least 15% vol. and a minimum sugar content of 100 g per liter (with most amaretto liqueurs containing significantly more), the alcohol contained can be ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin , a distillate of agricultural origin or a spirit as defined in the regulation.
This enables different manufacturing processes, for example maceration of almond shells in neutral alcohol, the flavoring of neutral alcohol with almond extract or, in the case of high-quality products, also refinement with apricot kernel oil. The Spirits Ordinance also allows the use of other natural or nature-identical flavoring substances or flavoring extracts, but not artificial flavors. The brownish color is usually achieved by the color caramel .
Since "Amaretto" is not registered as a generic or denomination of origin in the list of protected geographical indications of the EU Spirits Regulation, amaretto liqueurs can also be produced outside of Italy.
The typical, marzipan-like taste of amaretto is due to bitter almond oil and its main component benzaldehyde . Contrary to what the name suggests, bitter almond oil is mainly obtained from apricot kernels.
Popular brands
The history of the most famous amaretto brand Disaronno supposedly dates back to the Renaissance . According to an origin legend typical of liqueurs, a young woman is said to have run a tavern in Saronno near Milan in 1525 , where pilgrims stayed overnight. She is said to have sat for one of her guests, the painter Bernadino Luini, for a fresco model and fell in love with him. To win his affection, she prepared a sweet liqueur made from brandy, apricot kernels and other spices, named "Disaronno" after where she lived, and gave him the recipe as a present. From then on, the recipe was inherited in his family until one of his descendants, Giovanni Reina, rediscovered it. At the beginning of the 20th century, Domenico Reina finally began to sell the liqueur commercially. In 1942 Amaretto Disaronno was first bottled in the characteristic, square bottle, and in 1947 the company ILLVA: Industria, Lombarda, Liquori, Vini & Affini was founded. It is still family-owned today, now trading as ILLVA Saronno SpA . The main product is Disaronno Originale with 28% vol. The liqueur, no longer designated as “Amaretto”, is made from neutral alcohol that is sweetened with caramel sugar and flavored with 17 different spices, herbs and fruits. It is characterized by the use of apricot kernel oil, which distinguishes it from most other amaretto liqueurs.
Other Italian amaretto liqueurs are Luxardo Amaretto di Saschira (28% vol.), Lazzaroni Amaretto (24% vol.) And Vincenzi Amaretto Di Torino (25% vol.). Amaretto liqueurs are also offered internationally by numerous liqueur and spirits manufacturers. Examples in Europe are Bols Amaretto (24% vol.) And De Kuyper Amaretto Liqueur (30% vol.), In the United States Hiram Walker Amaretto Liqueur (24% vol.), Mr. Boston Amaretto (15% vol.) And Paramount Amaretto Liqueur (15% vol.). There are also amaretto liqueurs from countless brands .
enjoyment
Amaretto is either drunk pure, unrefrigerated or on ice, or as an ingredient in mixed drinks. Apple or cherry juice is often used for mixing in long drinks . Well-known cocktails with amaretto are Amaretto Sour (with lemon juice), God Father (with Scotch whiskey ), God Mother (with vodka ) and French Connection (with cognac ).
Amaretto is also warmed up straight and garnished with whipped cream, drunk as an addition to coffee, hot chocolate, mulled wine, etc., and sometimes used to flavor the tiramisu dessert . The typical amaretto taste is also recognizable in the Amarettini biscuits , as the macaroons contain ground almonds and / or apricot kernels or bitter almond flavor (but no amaretto liqueur).
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ignaz Heinrich Schürmayer: Handbook of the medical police. S. 117, Enke, Erlangen 1848 ( limited preview in the Google book search).
- ↑ Regulation (EC) No. 110/2008 ("EU Spirits Regulation") , accessed on July 5, 2015 , on liqueur in particular Appendix 1, No. 32.
- ↑ a b Stefan Gabányi in: Charles Schumann : Schumann's Bar . Collection Rolf Heyne, Munich 2011 (1st edition), ISBN 978-3-89910-416-5 . Commodity Science, p. 286.
- ↑ See Regulation (EC) No. 110/2008 ("EU Spirits Regulation") , accessed on July 5, 2015 , Appendix III.
- ^ A b André Dominé : The ultimate bar book. The world of spirits and cocktails . hfullmann publishers (Tandem Verlag), Potsdam 2008, ISBN 978-3-8331-4802-6 , p. 634.