Italians like to linger at the
table, both during and after a meal. Dessert is leisurely and often
served in three parts. First the sweet itself, which is accompanied by a
dessert wine or liqueur, then espresso or coffee, and finally a
digestivo, like grappa or amaro. Dessert wines and little sweet nibbles are brought out as a way to
keep guests at the table, to keep conversation going. Unlike here in the
States, in Italy coffee or tea are served only after dessert. In fact,
it’s considered rude for a restaurant to rush customers by setting down
coffee with dessert. For me, one of the biggest differences between Italy and the US is
the restaurant experience. In Italy when I sit down to dinner in a
restaurant, that table is mine for the night. I am never rushed. The courses are served in a leisurely fashion---not only because the
food in Italy is usually made to order, but because they want us to have
time between courses to digest to build anticipation and an appetite
for the next course. My plate isn’t removed until everyone else at the
table has also finished eating. I especially like the after-dessert digestivo tradition in Italy. My favorites are the homemade ones, brought out by the chef himself
and poured with a flourish as a final culinary gift. I’ve had all kinds
of delicious concoctions and the chefs shared their recipes generously.
Glossary of a few of the many Italian dessert wines and liqueurs
Alchermes
Alchermes, a spicy-sweet bright red liqueur, has been popular in
Italy since the Renaissance. Pope Clemente VII considered it healthful
going so far as to call it “the elixir of long life.” Alchermes was
supposedly brought to France by Maria de’ Medici where it was called
“liquore de’ Medici.”
Originally the shell of the cochineal bug was used to color the
liqueur, but today it’s made with artificial colorings. It is a classic
dessert ingredient in many Italian desserts including zuppa inglese and
pesche dolci, faux peach cookies.
Aleatico dell’ Elba Passito
An exceptional dessert wine with lovely aroma of roses and dark
berries awarded the special denominazione d’origine controllata e
garantita, DOCG, designation.
Amaretto
Amaretto, “little bitter,” is a sweet almond-flavored liqueur cordial. Amaretto
is an ingredient in hundreds of dessert recipes and is also paired with
all sorts of Italian sweets, especially crunchy amaretti cookies. One
of Italy’s best selling brands of amaretto is Disaronno Originale.
Amaro
Amaro is the term for a general category of bittersweet digestive,
after-dinner drinks thought to aid digestion. Amaro, which means
“bitter,” are generally made from various spices, herbs, fruits and
alcohol. Popular since the Middle Ages, monks originally created these
drinks as a medicinal remedy. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of
different types of Amaro in Italy, with each region, city, and even village claiming its own local specialty.
Asti-DOCG
Asti, a sparkling dessert wine, is made with the moscato bianco grapes from the Langhe, Monferrato and Roero areas of Piedmont. Asti is a DOCG wine,
meaning it is officially certified and guaranteed as to process and
origin. In Italian, Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita. Asti, an easy-to-drink wine, has a moderate alcohol content of 7 to
9.5%. In Italy it is served in bowl-shaped glasses, rather than the
thinner champagne flutes. The thinking is that the narrow flute
exaggerates Asti’s sweetness, concentrating the liquid on the tip of the
tongue, where the sweet taste buds are situated. It is classically paired with panettone at holiday time.
Asti Moscato
A dessert wine made in the Asti region of Piedmont using moscato grapes. It’s less bubbly than Asti-Spumante.
Barolo Chinato
An after-dinner digestivo from the Piedmont region, made with Barolo
wine that has been steeped with different spices such as cinnamon,
coriander, mint, and vanilla. It is a very smooth, aromatic beverage
that pairs beautifully with chocolate.
Brachetto d’Acqui
Red sparkling dessert wine produced in the Piedmont. It is a blend of Aleatico and Moscato Nero grapes.
Frangelico
Hazelnut liqueur in a trademarked bottle shaped like a monk. Great for both drinking and as a desserts ingredient.
Galliano
Bright yellow liqueur, that’s a mix of dozens of herbs and spices.
First made in Livorno in 1896 and named for 19th century Italian war
hero Giuseppe Galliano. Used in cocktails, and as an after-dinner
digestivo, it’s also a terrific flavoring for various dessert recipes.
Grappa
Grappa is a fragrant spirit, 75-120 proof, made from the grape skins
and other solids left-over from the winemaking process. The name,
grappa, most likely comes from the Italian for bunch of grapes, grappolo
d’uva. In Italy grappa is enjoyed after dessert, served in small,
tulip-shaped or short grappa glasses. It is also exceptional paired with
Italian chocolates. A splash of grappa is often added to espresso to
create caffé corretto.
Limoncello
A lemon liqueur from the Amalfi Coast, Calabria, and Sicily. Made by
steeping lemon peels in alcohol and sugar, it can be drunk at room
temperature or icy cold. Wonderful with Italian cookies, pastries, and
cakes, limoncello is also an ingredient in many desserts.
Malvasia delle Lipari
An amber-colored DOC dessert wine from Sicily with an apricot-honey taste and lovely aroma.
Maraschino liqueur
A clear cherry liqueur made from northern Italian marasca cherries
(not the same as maraschino cherries found in supermarkets). Used in
many traditional Italian desserts.
Marsala
Marsala is a DOC golden-colored fortified wine made with grapes grown
in the Marsala region of Sicily. Marsala is made both sweet and dry.
The dry is enjoyed chilled as an aperitif, while the sweet is sipped at
room temperature as a dessert wine.
Marsala is used extensively in Italian cooking, especially in making sweets such as the classic zabaglione.
Moscadello di Montalcino
A DOC, Denomination of Controlled Origin, dessert wine from the
Montalcino region of Tuscany made with aromatic white muscat grapes.
It is produced in three versions: still, sparkling and late-harvest.
Nocino
Nocino is a dark colored digestivo, made from unripe green walnuts.
Traditionally the walnuts are gathered on the eve of the Feast of San
Giovanni, June 24th, on La Notte delle Vergini Scalze, “the evening of
the barefoot virgins.”
Passito
Passito is dessert wine made by pressing partially dried grapes, dried to concentrate their sugar and flavor.
Passito di Pantelleria
One of Italy’s most acclaimed passito wines. In 1971 this fine
dessert wine from Sicily became only the 3rd Italian wine to receive DOC
status. It has a lovely bouquet and velvety sweet yet crisp flavor.
Sambuca
A colorless digestivo liqueur flavored with star anise. Sambuca is
splashed in coffee, or served neat and topped with 3 toasted
espresso beans called con la mosca, “with flies”. Besides giving a
little caffeine kick, chewing on the beans highlight Sambuca’s flavor.
Sassolino
A liqueur from the town of Sassolino in Modena, flavored with star anise, it’s an ingredient in many Emilia desserts.
Strega liqueur
Strega, “witch,” is a yellow liqueur made from over 70 ingredients
including saffron, which gives it its color. Used as a digestivo and in
dessert recipes.
Vin Santo
Vin Santo, “holy wine,” is a smooth amber-colored wine made from
Malvasia and Trebbiano grapes. Although made in many parts of Italy, it
is most often associated with Tuscany where it is often paired with
cantucci, the area’s crunchy almond biscotti. Italy Magazine (with photos).
