The plates are cleared, the wine is nearly done, and in Italy this is the moment a small glass of something bitter appears. Not another cocktail, not a pudding wine, but a digestivo: a dark, herbal, faintly medicinal drink taken slowly to round off the meal. It is a quiet ritual, and a very good one for a cold night.
If mulled wine is the British idea of a warming winter drink, the amaro is the Italian one, and it is more interesting. This is a guide to amari, grappa and the Italian digestivo, what they are, how to drink them, and how to finish a winter dinner the Italian way at La Lanterna.
What is a digestivo?
A digestivo is simply a drink taken after a meal to help it settle, the bookend to the aperitivo you have before. Where the aperitivo is light and sharp to wake the appetite, the digestivo is darker and richer, meant to close things down.
The word covers a few families of drink: the bitter amari, grappa, limoncello and the other herbal and fortified liqueurs. What they share is that they are sipped, not knocked back, and taken in small measures, usually after dessert and coffee. A digestivo is the opposite of a nightcap ordered for the sake of it. It is part of the meal, the full stop at the end of the sentence.
Amaro: the bittersweet heart of it
If you try one Italian after-dinner drink, make it an amaro.
Amaro is the Italian word for bitter, and an amaro is a herbal liqueur made by infusing alcohol with herbs, roots, barks and citrus peel, then balancing the result with just enough sugar. Every one is different, and most are closely guarded recipes with roots in the monasteries and apothecaries that once prized them as tonics. The flavour is hard to describe and easy to love: bittersweet, herbal, a little like cola made by a monk.
A few worth knowing
Some amari are gentle and approachable, some are bracingly bitter. Amaro Montenegro is soft, orange-scented and a good place to start. Averna, from Sicily, is darker and sweeter, with notes of caramel, bitter orange and citrus. Amaro del Capo is herbal and easy-going. At the fierce end sits Fernet Branca, intensely bitter and minty, the one Italians swear by for a heavy meal and newcomers approach with respect. La Lanterna pours all of these, so you can work from the gentle end towards the brave.
Grappa, limoncello and the rest
Beyond the amari, a couple of other digestivi are worth knowing.
Grappa is an Italian grape spirit, distilled from what is left of the grapes after winemaking, the skins and stems. At its roughest it is firewater; at its best, from a producer like Marzadro, it is smooth, aromatic and warming, a proper sipping spirit for the end of a meal. Limoncello is the sweeter, friendlier option, a bright lemon liqueur from the south, made by steeping lemon peel in alcohol with sugar and served ice-cold, sharp and refreshing after a rich dinner. Sambuca is another sweeter choice, flavoured with anise and traditionally taken to settle the stomach. Between the bitter amari, the warming grappa and the citrus hit of limoncello, there is a digestivo for every palate.
The liqueur coffee, a Glasgow favourite
There is one more way to end a winter meal that sits somewhere between a coffee and a digestivo, and Glasgow has always been fond of it.
A liqueur coffee is exactly what it sounds like: hot coffee, cream and a measure of spirit. La Lanterna pours the full range, a Calypso with Tia Maria, an Irish with whiskey, a Royal with brandy, a Gaelic with Scotch, a Baileys coffee. On a cold night it does the job of pudding, coffee and digestivo in one glass. In Italy the simplest version is the caffè corretto, an espresso “corrected” with a small splash of grappa or sambuca. If you would rather keep it classic, an espresso martini or a plain espresso followed by an amaro works just as well. Our guide to Italian cocktails and what they pair with has more on the drinks side of the evening.
The bitter thread runs all evening
One nice thing about Italian bitters is that they do not only belong at the end of the meal. The same family of flavours bookends the whole evening.
At the start, the aperitivo leans on the same bittersweet note: a Negroni, Campari stirred with gin and vermouth, or an Aperol spritz, or the non-alcoholic Crodino, all of them designed to wake the appetite with a touch of bitterness. In the middle, a glass of red does its work. And at the end, the amaro closes the circle. An espresso martini sits somewhere in between, coffee and sweetness with a grown-up edge. If you like the bitter, herbal side of Italian drinking, you can follow that thread from the first drink to the last.
How to end a meal the Italian way
Putting it together is simple, and it is one of the nicest parts of a long winter dinner.
Finish your main, order a coffee, and then, rather than rushing for the bill, order a small glass of something bitter to sip alongside or after it. Take your time over it. That is the whole point of the digestivo: it slows the end of the meal down and gives you a reason to sit a little longer in the warm. After a rich winter dish, something from our guide to Italian winter warmers, it is exactly what you want.
It pairs beautifully with the end of a celebration too. If you are rounding off a Christmas dinner or a long table of friends, the digestivo is the civilised way to let the evening wind down.
A note on serving
A few small things make a digestivo taste the way it should, and they are worth knowing before you order.
Amari are usually served neat in a small glass, at room temperature or lightly chilled, and sipped rather than rushed. A measure is small by design; this is a drink to make last twenty minutes, not two. Some people take an amaro over a single ice cube or with a twist of orange, which softens the bitterness, and there is no shame in it. Grappa is served neat and a touch cool. Limoncello comes straight from the freezer, almost syrupy with cold. None of it needs ceremony. The only real rule is to go slowly, which is the whole idea of ending a meal this way.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an amaro?
A bittersweet Italian herbal liqueur, made by infusing alcohol with herbs, roots and citrus peel and sweetening the result. Most are based on closely guarded recipes. It is sipped after a meal as a digestivo.
What does digestivo mean?
It is the Italian term for an after-dinner drink taken to help the meal settle, the counterpart to the aperitivo taken beforehand.
What is the strongest, most bitter amaro?
Fernet Branca is the famously fierce one, intensely bitter and minty. Montenegro, Averna and del Capo are gentler and better for a first try.
Is grappa a digestivo?
Yes. Grappa is an Italian grape spirit traditionally drunk at the end of a meal, ideally a smooth, well-made one rather than a harsh one.
What is a good after-dinner drink if I do not like bitter things?
Limoncello served ice-cold, sambuca, or a liqueur coffee. These are sweeter and gentler than an amaro while still ending the meal nicely.
Settle in and finish properly
A good winter meal deserves a proper ending, not a rushed one. Come and linger over a coffee and a small glass of something Italian while the cold waits outside. Book a table at La Lanterna and end the evening the way Italians do.