Amara Rossa Sicily

Amara, the feminine form of ‘amaro,’ is made by a Sicilian orange grower called Edoardo Strano. His farm is on the east coast of Sicily, just south of the city of Catania and Mount Etna, the enormous volcano that dominates this whole corner of the island. The orange grove lies on the slope of Etna where the soil is rich in minerals, at about 300m above sea level and where the temperature can vary by 20 degrees Celsius (36 degrees Fahrenheit) between day and night. This temperature variation helps to concentrate the flavors in the oranges and turns the peels a bright red. Sicilian blood oranges from the Tarocco varieties are famous throughout Italy for their juice (a glass of Tarocco juice in Sicily in season is a revelation), but Edoardo decided to also use the zest from his oranges as a raw material for an amaro.