ITALIAN FIREWATER

Recently I posted about Lemoncello , a delightful Italian after dinner liqueur made with lemons, alcohol and sugar. The alcohol content is about 12% which makes a strong drink for some people. Definitely something that needs to be sipped.

There is another popular Italian drink that is also a sipping "digestivo". The only difference, this one will knock you on your butt a whole lot faster than Limoncello. Containing about 40% alcohol, chugging may lead to someone pulling you off the floor.

Nonno used to make this drink, so I have been familiar with the potency of this substance for many years. However, I never tried it until my first trip to Italy. That was my first and last experience.

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Grappa (literally meaning "grape stalk") is made from the leftover fermented skins, seeds, pulp, and stems, of the wine making process. This "vinace" (pomace) has to be totally fresh and moist for processing. Also, the better the grape variety, the better the Grappa!

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Grappa is an exclusively Italian drink; the name is protected by the EU, meaning that the drink can only be called grappa if it's sourced and produced in Italy.

I'm not familiar with the exact distilling process, but it is truly unique and a testament to the Italian recycling ingenuity. It is a tradition that speaks to the ‘Italian thrift’, because "waste not, want not"!

After completion, the spent pomace is pressed into dried cakes and used for fuel in the still. The ashes are spread in the vineyards as fertilizer, thus completing the cycle.

The color of the glass bottle is always clear, but the bottle itself can be any size or shape. I'm not sure what the significance of clear glass is, unless being able to see the color is a priority!

I'm told drinking a young Grappa very chilled in a tall thin glass is best. An aged Grappa is best at room temperature from a brandy snifter. However, the colder it is, the less the burning sensation!

To keep the strong vapors furtherest from your nose, keep the glass filled one-third or less.

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Traditionally, Grappa was used as a folk remedy for toothache, bronchitis, rheumatism and indigestion. Being so strong, I wouldn't be surprised if Grappa wasn't used for snakebite.

Dad used to tell me stories about being given a shot of Grappa on extremely cold days before heading out to school. It's beyond me how children even stayed upright after drinking that stuff!

Perhaps, I will revisit a glass in the future to determine if I have grown up enough to handle Grappa . Perhaps not!

Beware of Grappa!

Salute!

Hope you enjoyed yet another one of my posts!

Remember,

Keep on the Sunnyside!

Photo #1. Source