Vergano's Americano and Aperitif - Drink

WHAT

Mauro Vergano’s chinato and an aperitif recipe.

WHY

Created by a chemist, who uses organic Grignolino grapes, a red grape grown in Piedmont, to make this unique, delicious, and traditional Chinato.

Vergano’s Americano Aperitif

Recipe Courtesy of Mauro Vergano

Ingredients

- Vergano Americano

- Soda water

- Orange peel

Directions

1. Pour a measure of Americano over ice.

2. Twist orange peel over the drink to release the oils and drop in the peel.

3. Top with soda.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Mauro Vergano’s recommendations on where to eat and shop in Piedmont, Italy.

Cocktail lovers should think about adding Vergano’s Americano to their collection. It’s is a complex and delightful drink with an interesting history. By trade, Mauro Vergano worked as a trained chemist and oenologist. But he was fascinated with chinato, a “vino aromatizzato,” an aromatized wine infused with quinine bark (of the cinchona tree), herbs and other aromatics such as orange peel.

Chinato is a traditional Italian drink dating back to the late 19th century when a pharmacist and gourmet, Giuseppe Cappellano, believed that drinking fine aged wine could have therapeutic effects. So he went to work in his lab, using botanicals to make a digestivo. The result was a win-win: a medicinal elixir that happened to taste good.

As a hobby, Mauro Vergano enjoyed making limited amounts of chinato to give to a few of his friends, the ones he knew would appreciate his home-brewed potion. A few years ago, he decided to keep the tradition alive and go pro with his version of the traditional Piedmontese wine-based liquor.

Vergano makes a traditional chinato using nebbiolo grapes as well as his Luli, made from moscato grapes. The Americano falls somewhere in the middle of the two, since it is made from grignolino grapes. Grignolino is a red grape grown in Piedmont and in Vergano’s case, he uses organic grapes supplied by wine producer Cascina Tavijn.

You can drink chinato as it’s traditionally enjoyed - as a digestif, but since the grignolino grapes produce a lighter style chinato, it works perfectly as an aperitif. Mauro’s recipe results in a drink that’ll whet your appetite. It’s refreshing, light, and balanced and once you try it, it might just become your favorite.