Italian Cocktail Club: Vermouths, Liqueurs and Amaros modern mixology couldn’t have done without _ Liquore Strega

Chapter II

After our first piece on Vermouth Cinzano 1757 we move far away from Turin, we move to Benevento (Naples) to talk about a very unique product: Liquore Strega.

Golden color is due to saffron extract

Liquore Strega started its story back in the 1860, when Giuseppe Alberti founded the company and started to produce this liqueur named after the old legend that place the city of Benevento as the former seat of witches’ rites. Giuseppe understood the importance to combine the best of the Sannio area’s herbs with some of the finest spices from all over the world and gave birth to a super-deep, complex and unique liqueur; Liquore Strega is the result of the infusion and distillation of roughly 70 herbs and spices, such as italian juniper, Ceylon cinnamon, florentine iris and the very local Samnite Mint (a very aromatic mint with tiny, rounded leaves). These botanicals are infused separately according to their hardness, distilled and then mixed together; the Samnite Mint is infused and distilled by itself to preserve its unique aroma. After the distillations the spirits are mixed, sugar is added and also the final touch: A super rich and intense Saffron extract which gives to Strega its peculiar, luscious golden color. Liquore Strega is aged for roughly six months and then sold in over 50 countries across the world at 40% ABV.

How to mix it

Strega is not an easy child and needs a proper, conscious handling; A catchy challenge for every skilled bartender. Due to its high ABV it can be very interesting to think about Strega not as a liqueur but as a base spirit; it has a lot of juniper inside, so why don’t you try to substitute Gin in a classic recipe such as Martinez or Corpse Reviver? It can be a banging drink and if you balance it out correctly, Strega can give your cocktail unlimited shades of flavours.

At the Mad Dog we are proud to offer the cocktail which won the Strega Mixology Competition last year prepared by the hands of the winner, Matteo Rebuffo: A take on a classic Corpse Reviver.

50 ml Liquore Strega 30 ml Lemon juice 25 ml Americano Cocchi 3 dashes of Angostura Bitters 15 ml Egg white Absinthe spray Shaken & served in a coupette