Six drinks to try on your trip to Italy

If half the fun of your holiday comes from eating and drinking, add these beverages to your list of things to try on your Italian holiday.

Italy Street

Neapolitan pizza. Check. Homemade tiramisu. Check. Spaghetti alle vongole with a sea view. Check. While you might have a list as long as your arm of Italian foods to try on your holiday, eating is only half of the equation. Make sure you try some of these delicious drinks on your trip to enjoy a full Italian culinary adventure. Salute!

1. Amaro

These bitter liqueurs served after dinner to help with digestion were originally sold as medicine, and their recipes have been perfected over years of mixing botanicals to get the perfect flavour. Amaro Montengro is one of the most commonly available and relatively easy drink, while Fernet Branca is for the more advanced amaro drinker. There are numerous amari available in bars in Italy, so ask a friendly bar tender to recommend one to your taste.

2. Vin Santo

Vin Santo (meaning “holy wine”) is a sweet dessert wine traditionally associated with Tuscany but also produced in several other wine regions around Italy. Usually produced using white grape varieties, following harvest the grapes are left to dry out before fermentation. The result is higher residual sugars and sweeter wine. Quaff with your favourite dessert or try with the traditional accompaniment of an almond cantucci biscuit.

3. Amaretto

This sweet almond flavoured liqueur usually drunk after dinner can be added to coffee or served on the rocks or neat. The most popular brand is Disaronno, named after Saronno, the town where it originated.

4. Franciacorta

While Prosecco is certainly the more well-known Italian sparkling wine, Franciacorta is the premium one. Produced in the northern region of Brescia (close to Milan) from chardonnay, pinot noir and small amounts of pinot blanc grapes, Franciacorta uses the traditional method to create a sparkling more comparable to Champagne than Prosecco. The good news is you can pick up a bottle of Franciacorta for much less than its French cousin.

5. Chinotto

One for the non-drinkers, chinotto is a slightly bitter soft drink popular in Italy. Often compared to cola because of the dark brown colouring, Chinotto is flavoured using the fruit of the myrtle-leaved orange tree.

6. Americano

Do you like Campari but find a negroni too strong? Try an americano for a similar flavour without the burn. Served as an aperitivo using Campari and sweet vermouth, the americano swaps out the gin in a negroni for soda water. The result is a very drinkable aromatic cocktail, that tastes almost like a bitter adult cola.

Recommended Italy Tours: Rome, Pompeii, Vatican City, Florence, Pisa, Tuscany, Amalfi Coast & Venice
Price Range: €15 – €899
Company: Sightseeing Tours Italy