Averna

Averna is a Sicilian amaro — a dark, bittersweet Italian herbal liqueur — first made in 1868 by Salvatore Averna in the town of Caltanissetta, in the island's interior. It is built by macerating a secret blend of herbs, roots, citrus peels and aromatic plants in a neutral spirit, then sweetening the infusion with caramel and sugar to produce a deep mahogany-brown liquid that leads with soft caramel and dried-fruit sweetness before unfolding into gentle herbal bitterness. Orange peel, licorice, juniper, myrtle and pomegranate are among the botanicals traditionally associated with it, and it sits at a moderate 29% ABV. Regarded as one of the smoothest, roundest amari — more caramel-forward and less aggressively bitter than a Fernet — it is drunk chiefly as an after-dinner digestivo, neat or over ice with a twist of orange, and increasingly as a mixer in stirred cocktails.