Amaro Montenegro is a traditional amaro distilled in

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...

, Italy. It is made from a secret blend of 40 botanicals including

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). Pollination is required to make the p ...

orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

peels and eucalyptus. The amaro was first produced by Stanislao Cobianchi in 1885 and was originally called Elisir Lungavita. In 1896, it was renamed Amaro Montenegro, after

Princess Elena of Montenegro Elena of Montenegro (; 8 January 1873 – 28 November 1952) was a Montenegrin princess as the daughter of King Nicholas I of Montenegro and his wife, Queen Milena. She was Queen of Italy from 1900 until 1946 as wife of King Victor Emmanuel I ...

who married Crown Prince Victor Emmanuel, the future

King Victor Emmanuel III King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

of Italy . Its production takes place in the factory of

San Lazzaro di Savena San Lazzaro di Savena ( Bolognese: ) is an Italian ''comune'' (municipality) of some 32,000 inhabitants in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, Emilia-Romagna. Geography The town is located on the Via Emilia, a major thoroughfare for town traffic, ...

(Province of Bologna) of Montenegro Srl. Cobianchi travelled from continent to continent collecting 40 rinds, woods, seeds, rhizomes, flowers, fruits, citrus peels, roots, stems and leaves. Amaro Montenegro is the result of a process that has been passed down through generations, unchanged since 1885. The Master Herbalist oversees the entire production process, just as Cobianchi once did. The famous Italian writer Gabriele D'Annunzio once described it as the "liquor of virtues".

Production process

The 40 botanicals and caramel colour that comprise Amaro Montenegro come from four continents. Some of these perfumes are from the Mediterranean, such as coriander and Artemisia, as well as some aromatic plants, oregano and marjoram, with bitter and sweet oranges, nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon. Once they reach the herbalist's workshop, the botanicals undergo three different forms of extraction: boiling, maceration and distillation. After this, twelve mother essences are taken and synthesized into six tasting notes: bitter and herbaceous, spicy and floral, chocolate and caramel, fresh and balsamic, vanilla and red fruits, and warm and tropical. One final element is added to these six notes, called "Premio"; it is the final and fundamental ingredient of the secret recipe. These are finally added to alcohol, water and sugar to leave a bitter-orange flavoured spirit with an abv of 23%. The Premio is the result of the micro-distillation of five botanicals. One litre for every 15,000 is enough to complete the recipe. Amaro Montenegro can be drunk on its own or used as an ingredient in many cocktails.

References

{{Alcoholic drinks Italian liqueurs Bologna Products introduced in 1885 Herbal liqueurs Italian brands