The Tasting Note
Amber, not dark — the color already signals softness.
Orange zest and bitter-orange marmalade lead, trailed by thyme, a cool menthol lift and a thread of dried herb.
Silkier than most amari, sweet and bitter arriving in the same sip, with pepper and licorice carrying through.
A cocoa echo closes it out, long and gentle rather than drying.
Made in Percoto on Nonino's own whole-grape ÙE distillate, aged at least a year in Limousin, Nevers and ex-Sherry casks before the herbal quintessence is married to it. Serve it neat, over ice with orange, or in a Paper Plane.
Drink now.
— Robert Cross
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Pour It Into
Paper Plane
The modern classic that put amaro on every cocktail menu in America.
Black Manhattan
Swap sweet vermouth for Averna and the Manhattan turns dark, silky, and faintly medicinal.
Amaro Highball
Three ingredients, one tall glass, the cleanest way to learn what an amaro really tastes like.
Nonino Old Fashioned
The Old Fashioned with amaro standing in for sugar — grappa-warm and orange-bright.
Amaro Sour
Egg-white silk over dark bitter herbs.
Where to Buy
Where to buy Nonino Amaro Quintessentia
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The Bitter Brief
One short Friday dispatch: a bottle worth buying, a cocktail worth mixing, and a little Italian history.