Cheers!

Amaro: The Spirited World of Bittersweet, Herbal Liqueurs, with Cocktails, Recipes, and Formulas – Brad Thomas Parsons (Ten Speed Press)

Full disclosure right up front; I am a beer drinker so the whole idea of cocktails based on bitter spirits was kind of foreign to me. When I think of people who drink bitters, I envision a bunch of old guys who look and smell like they just stepped off the boat from Europe.

That being said, I didn’t know quite what to expect when I cracked open Amaro: The Spirited World of Bittersweet, Herbal Liqueurs, with Cocktails, Recipes, and Formulas, by award winning author Brad Thomas Parsons. Contained within I found an interesting mix of the expected drink recipes, sidling alongside amari tinged food recipes and even a nifty bit of travel log tour through the bars, cafes and distilleries of Italy.

Parsons, the recipient of a Masters in Fine Arts from Columbia University writes with a stylistic flourish that makes it easy to understand how he cut his writing teeth for the likes of Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure and Lucky Peach. His loving descriptions had even this beer drinker building up a thirst and the courage to try something new.