Amaretto is a sweet Italian liqueur with a pronounced almond flavor, its name meaning a little bitter in Italian. It originates in the town of Saronno, where popular legend credits its creation in 1525 to a young widowed innkeeper who gave the painter Bernardino Luini a gift of apricot kernels steeped in brandy after he chose her as a model for a fresco of the Madonna. Depending on the producer it is made from apricot kernels, bitter almonds, peach stones or almonds, whose natural benzaldehyde content gives the liqueur its characteristic flavor even when almonds themselves are not used, and it typically contains 21 to 28 percent alcohol by volume. Amaretto is drunk neat, mixed into cocktails such as the amaretto sour, added to coffee, and used in desserts including ice cream, cookies and cakes.
Facts
Disputed
Origin Period, From (Year)1525 is the date given by the popular legend of Bernardino Luini and the Saronno innkeeper, which is not documented history. Origin Region Connections
In the Other Atlases
- Also in Geography Atlas: Italy, originated there.
Sources
1. Amaretto, Wikipedia
History section, sentence beginning In 1525
In 1525, a Saronno church commissioned artist Bernardino Luini, one of Leonardo da Vinci's pupils, to paint its sanctuary with frescoes.
Opening sentence
Amaretto (Italian for 'a little bitter') is a sweet Italian liqueur originating from the comune (municipality) of Saronno.
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