PBMichiganWolverine
St. George Bruto Americano
Bitter Liqueurs — California, USA
Reviewed
February 10, 2021 (edited October 17, 2022)
Thanks to @cascode and @Richard-ModernDrinking , I’ve been getting deeper and deeper into this amaro rabbit role. Aside from that amazing Balcones stout finish whiskey I had last week, it’s been weeks since I’ve had any whiskey...been down this amaro highway full speed.
So, this here is Bruto Americano, “ ugly American” in Italian. It’s made from several North American herbs and roots, and one very other interesting ingredient—-the cochineal bug. Yes, you read that right. The cochineal bug is what has traditionally been used to provide a reddish color. It thrives in the desert southwest on cactus plants, and is somewhat small and scaly in nature. And red. So, the beautiful red wine hue in this amaro is from naturally deriving from this insect. I’m honestly not grossed out by it...anyone that’s ever had coffee from grounds, or peanut butter, has a bit of FDA approved minimal crushed bugs in it anyway.
So...having this neat is woody, herbal, bitter. Unlike the Italian amaro, where I simply added ice, this needs to be mixed with something else. Unless you like woody / herbal/ bitter, of course. I took a 1-to-1 combination of freshly squeezed orange juice, added this and topped it with ice. The sweetness is more now from the juice, but really well balanced with the woody bitter flavor. And the color—-wow—-red from the bugs mixed with orange...becomes almost like sunrise.
At just about $25, Highly recommended—-especially if you experiment with some juices.
25.0
USD
per
Bottle
Create Account
or
Sign in
to comment on this review
@cascode exactly —that low ABV plus the herbal/bitter / sweet is really appealing. I won’t ever replace whiskey for me, but the price tag allows you to get one or two wrong as well, as opposed to whiskey
@jonwilkinson7309 I’ve had insects once before—-in the Amazon. Right out of college, I took a trip down to Brazil. Instead of doing the typical Rio gambit, we caught a plane to Manaus, from where we hired a guide to take us a 5 hour boat ride deep into the jungle. We stayed in a little village ( no electricity or running water, sleep in grass thatch huts on hammocks ). For dinner, we ate what they provided. Large beetles were a common dinner item, served with aromatic herbs. Not too bad actually, once you get over the mental block
Amari are addictive once you get the taste - that sweet/bitter combination with fruit and herbal complexity is endlessly fascinating. They also make a nice change from high-strength spirits and are particularly enjoyable in warmer weather. This one sounds fascinating but I doubt we get it here. Australian distillers have been making home-grown amari and aperitivi for a while now, with some very good results. Great to see this tradition of drinks taking hold outside Europe.
Several years ago, I read a lot about startups that were cultivating insects to use as a high-protein food source. That seems to have died out, and I would never have guessed that I'd hear about insects being used to color liquors. Fascinating!