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Amaro by Brad Thomas Parsons
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Amaro

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Amaro by Brad Thomas Parsons
Hardcover $26.00
Oct 11, 2016 | ISBN 9781607747482

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  • $26.00

    Oct 11, 2016 | ISBN 9781607747482

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  • Oct 11, 2016 | ISBN 9781607747499

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Product Details

Praise

“Long before there were chef-driven cocktails, there were monk-driven digestivi, also known as amaro. They made us feel better, encouraged post-prandial discourse, and set us up for a better tomorrow. Thanks to Brad Thomas Parsons, we now have a book that properly celebrates the category, and teaches us just how sweet it is to drink what’s bitter.”
– Danny Meyer, founder of the Union Square Hospitality Group

“I am a longtime lover of bitter Italian liqueurs. But this smart handbook has deepened my understanding of and heightened my appreciation for amaro and its kin. Read this and you will be thirsty.” 
– Mario Batali

“Brad Thomas Parsons’s Bitters quickly became the definitive guide to a mysterious but essential cocktail ingredient. He’s done it again with Amaro, a gorgeous, comprehensive, and delectable exploration of the world’s bittersweet aperitifs and digestifs. Parsons’s passion for the history, culture, and personalities behind these herbaceous concoctions, coupled with Ed Anderson’s gorgeous photography, make Amaro a must-have.”
– Amy Stewart, author of The Drunken Botanist
 
“A few things happen as you age: you start really liking yogurt, you talk about seeing ‘other people,’ you’re willing to risk big to let out a memorable ‘Bababooey!’ scream at your son’s piano recital, and, fortunately, you begin to really enjoy bitters. Not only for their taste, but also because they’re a panacea for the middle-aged gut. Amaro is no longer strictly a clever way to deter teenage partygoers from raiding the house bar; it’s a staple ingredient, and it’s about time for such a thoroughly researched and deliciously presented book on the subject. Amaro is complete and thirst-inducing. Two thumbs up!”
– Frédéric Morin and David McMillan, authors of The Art of Living According to Joe Beef

“Fernet-Branca: what would we do without it?  It is certainly my favorite of the amaros; some even say that it cures all known ailments and improves the humors. What a treat to read Amaro, a book devoted to these bittersweet aids to digestion, health, and happiness.” 
– Fergus Henderson, author of The Complete Nose to Tail

“With cocktail recipes, amaro-spiked desserts, and even a guide to making your own amari, this book is a comprehensive guide to the liqueur. But more than just a guide, Amaro is a book you actually want to read. It’s written by Brad Thomas Parsons, the author of the James Beard and IACP award-winning book on bitters, and its best feature are the recipe headnotes. Ranging from personal anecdotes about cocktails to multiple paragraphs about a classic’s history, you get fun, interesting context with every recipe.”
Saveur

“One man’s love affair with bitter liqueurs…the book is ideally timed: Many Americans in the last few years have discovered the bracing pleasures of drinks like Campari, Aperol, Cynar and even the acerbic Fernet Branca.”
– New York Times

“…Parsons does a terrific job of showcasing [amari] in this collection of over 100 recipes.”
Publishers Weekly 

“…Parsons succeeds at opening up exciting possibilities to try at home or seek out at bars.”
 – Library Journal

“Parsons more than delivers on sweet ways to enjoy the spirit, explains the vast amari family tree and gives tips for how to make your own variety for every season.”
– 
Tasting Table

“If you’re a fan of Campari, Averna, Cynar, or other bittersweet liqueurs, this book will have your mouth watering and your liquor cabinet collapsing under its own weight.”
Serious Eats

“Brad Thomas Parsons’s Amaro: The Spirited World of Bittersweet, Herbal Liqueurs serves as an Alice-like rabbit hole allowing full immersion in the world of amaro…”
– Wall Street Journal

“The man who might as well change his middle name to “bitter” is back with a follow-up to his award-winning Bitters. Beautifully photographed by Ed Anderson, Amaro is as much a desperately needed guide to the opaque and ill-defined world of bitter herbal liqueurs as it is a visual love letter to Italy. … Parsons once again shows why he’s become one of the drink world’s most reliable voices.”
PUNCH

“The amaro craze now has its bible.”
 – Chicago Reader

“Parsons, whose first book Bitters: a Spirited History of a Classic Cure-All covered similar territory via bitters, is a natural fit for this material. And his descriptions—both in page-long essays and in descriptive paragraphs for each drink—are biographical, informative, and witty enough to keep even the modestly curious engaged. That is, the index is not your only entry point—you can comfortably and sequentially flip pages.”
– Seattle Met 

“This book is a deep dive into the history and characteristics of amaro with excellent cocktail recipes. Any cocktail nerd will love reading this book.”
– Tampa Bay Times
 
“With gorgeous photos and 100 original recipes, it will seriously amp up your man’s esoteric cocktail game.”
–  PureWow
 
“A must for anyone who has a shelf for cocktail books.”
–  The Manual
 
“Parsons lucidly explains how the centuries-old European tradition of digestifs made from complex recipes of ingredients ranging from artichokes to myrrh and often secret combos of mountain herbs became the latest obsession in American cocktail culture.”
 – Philadelphia Inquirer 
 
“This stylishly-designed volume offers background on the main producers, over a hundred cocktail recipes and a section on how to make your own amaro at home.”
–  Forbes.com 

“It is a definitive and enlightening take on this oft-misunderstood spirit category that continues to intrigue, perplex and confuse even the most seasoned hands.”
–  Tales of the Cocktail

Amaro is the most in depth, detailed, and well put together book on the industry’s favorite class of liqueurs. From the better known Campari and Fernet Branca to American-made amari like Calisaya from Oregon, this work is encyclopedic in its scope.”
–  Star Chefs 

Table Of Contents

Introduction.

DEMYSTIFYING AMARO.5 

EXPLORING THE WORLD OF AMARO .23 

APERITIVO COCKTAILS.87 
Americano. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90 
Aperol Spritz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93 
Campari and Soda. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93 
Garibaldi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94 
Negroni Sbagliato. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  97 

ESSENTIAL AMARO COCKTAILS .99 
Boulevardier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100 
Hanky Panky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 
Jungle Bird. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 
Negroni. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 
Old Pal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 
Toronto. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 

MODERN AMARO COCKTAILS .111 
Alpine Slide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112 
Alpine Sour. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114 
Amaro Amanté. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115 
Amaro Sour. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 
The Art of the Choke/
Kyle’s After Pork Digestif . . . . . . . . .121 
Averna Smash. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122 
Bartender on Acid. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122 
Bitter Giuseppe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123 
The Bitter Swagger. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124 
Bjórn Supremacy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126 
Black Manhattan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127 
Boss Colada. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 
The Brave. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 
The Brunch Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 
Cantina Band. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 
Cappelletti Spritz. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 
Cardinal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .136 
Carroll Gardens. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 
The Chipileños. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 
Choke and Smoke. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 
Cranberry Beret. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .140 
Cynara. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 
Eeyore’s Requiem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 
Elena’s Virtue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 
Embittered Garibaldi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 
Exit Strategy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 
Fields Forever. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151 
Flip Ya for Real. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152 
Foregone Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 
Friûl Libar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 
Gato Amargo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 
Grandmother’s Tea. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 
Here Today, Saigon Amaro. . . . . . . . . 162 
Hunting Vest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 
Ice-Berg. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 
Italian Buck. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .166 
The Jump Off. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167 
Juniper #3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168 
Letters of Marque. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168 
Little Italy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .171 
M&M. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172 
The Mayor’s Lament. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174 
Monte Clift. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Mustache Ride. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 
Paper Plane. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 
Red Hook Criterium. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180 
Rickey Ramazzotti. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 
Root Down. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 
Safe Passage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 
San Francisco Treat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 
Senegalese Friendship Bracelet. . . . 189 
Seventh Heaven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190 
Sharpie Mustache. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193 
Skystone Meletti. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194 
Smithstreeter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197 
Summer Babe (Winter Version) . . . . . 198 
Summer Quartet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201 
Thistle and Weeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .203 
The Velvet Ditch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .203 
The Victorian. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .204 
The Waterfront. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .207 
White Negroni. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .208 
Yesterday, Today, and Amaro. . . . . . . 210 
Zucca for Love. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .211 
Chile-Choke. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214 
CIA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214 
Ferrari. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214 
Full Monte. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214 
Hard Start. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216 
Jälort. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218 
The Jimbo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218 
Magari. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 
Malori. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 
Maserati. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 
Nar Nar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 
Newport. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 
Shatz, Bro! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .220 
Spaghetti. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .220 
Zucca Joe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .220 

MAKING YOUR OWN AMARO .223 
Autumnal Amaro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .228 
Winter Spice Amaro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .229 
Rite of Spring Amaro. . . . . . . . . . . . . .232 
Summer Solstice Amaro . . . . . . . . . . .233 

THE BITTERSWEET K ITCHEN .235 
Caffè Corretto. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .239 
Drunken Affogato. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240 
Amaro-Spiked Milkshakes. . . . . . . . . .242 
Bittersweet Ice Cream Sodas. . . . . . .246 
Aperitivo Ice Pops. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .249 
Fernet and Coke Ice Pops. . . . . . . . . .249 
Bitter Balls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 
Amaro-etti Cookies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .252 
Branca Menta Hot Chocolate. . . . . . .255 
Amaro-Spiked
Mulled Hot Apple Cider. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .256 
Barrel-Aged Fernet Maple Syrup. . . .256

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