4 New American Amari to Try Now
Amari, those Italian bitter liqueurs based on botanical maceration, continue to pop up on cocktail menus and digestif lists, and you may have noticed their shelf space expanding in your local liquor store. American ingenuity is responsible for lots of new labels in the category, as craft distillers take on the challenge of making a bitter beverage that people will love to drink. Inspired by the old world classics, but very much their own thing, American amari are successfully vying for more shelf space and cocktail placements on their own merits.
Why Amari are on Trend
Aneka Saxon, Beverage Director at Machine in Chicago, agrees that amari have been “flooding the market,” and we asked her why their popularity is growing. “The first [reason] is the trend towards low-ABV style cocktails. Amari, are for the most part, much lower proof than liquor and are conveniently complex based spirits to use in these lower proof cocktails.” For beginners, she suggests using amari in a spritz for the proof, flavor, and sweetness, then enhancing the drink with bubbles, like prosecco, and citrus in juice or zest form.
Saxon also touches on the reason these botanical heavy spirits were historically categorized as digestivi in the first place. “Amari…have a positive impact on your digestive health.” The herbs and bittering agents within are thought to settle the stomach, which is a great selling point after a big meal.
She also notes that amari, because they are often macerations, are relatively easy to make “without a lot of serious equipment. Many amaro producers purchase neutral grain spirit from a third-party distiller and then add the flavor and sugar and dilution themselves.” Since they are not distilling, they don’t need a fancy expensive still, and the licensing can be, depending on the state, much less complex to obtain.
We chose a handful of excellent small production examples of varying styles of amari from around the US to try. Try them neat, in a spritz, or as a modifier in your next cocktail and see what a bit of bitterness can bring.
Murrell's Row
The bartenders who founded this Atlanta-based spirits brand in 2022 “value spirits that are designed to mix well in a cocktail,” says co-owner Bo Brown. Their Eno Amaro is, fittingly for their Georgia home, cola inspired, with botanicals including lots of citrus (orange, bitter orange, lemon, and lime), vanilla, and baking spices ( allspice and clove). “We use rhubarb root to give it some earthiness, hyssop for a traditional amaro grassiness, gentian root for bitterness, and a pinch of salt,” plus cane sugar to sweeten. Mix it with soda for a boozy take on an ice cold Coke, or splash it in cocktails like a Brooklyn or a Black Manhattan.
Spirit Works’ Sloe Amaro
Spirit Works Sloe Amaro
Piggybacking on renewed interest in sloe gin (they make a great one) the folks at this Sonoma County Distillery make an original sloe amaro that is at once tart, herbal and fruity. A no-brainer as a negroni add, this amaro would also bring bright berry notes to any spritz you choose to splash it into. Available only at the distillery. Sloe berries are a plum-like fruit that grows in Great Britain and is native to Western Asia. Read more about sloe gin including the Spirit Works version.
North Shore Distillery Bokamaro
This limited release is the suburban Chicago distillery’s first amaro, and represents Master Distiller Derek Kassebaum’s experimental bent. “He insisted ‘I want to do something with cabbage,’” says Sonja Kassebaum, co-owner and co-founder of the company. After playing with as many types of cabbage as they could find, they really liked the results they were getting from bok choy. “We got this really great green leafy vegetable quality and we thought we could layer under [those] bitter tones and citrus tones” traditionally found in amari. Other ingredients include fresh bitter melon, damiana, and cape aloe. Sip it after dinner to enjoy the minty, peppery notes, or stir it into a white negroni.
Another Chicago amaro, Amaro Cinpatrazzo, offers similar fresh yet bitter green notes thanks to its Italian influenced arugula base.
Sagamore Spirit Amaro
Sagamore Spirit Amaro
Maryland has been famous for rye since colonial times, when rye grass was planted in the region in rotation with the cash crop, tobacco, and a local spirit style (and following) developed. The distillers at Baltimore’s Sagamore Spirits make several award-winning rye whiskies, and when the time came to make an amaro to complement the line up, they decided to use their 95% rye distillate as the base spirit. A true whiskey lover’s amaro, with a deep spice character and a wonderful sarsaparilla flavor, this 60 proof liquid works beautifully as an after dinner sipper.