digestifs

As early autumn chills the air, our palate for sweet flavors that cut through the summer's heat and humidity diminishes, leaving room for explorations into bitter. Though not relegated to any particular season, the herbs and roots of the darker amari are perfect for creating more complex, sturdier cocktails that tend to warm as well as…

Don't call it pre-gaming — the French don't. An apéritif is a spirit drunk before a meal to stoke one's appetite and a digestif (wait for it) is drunk after a meal to calm it all down. Whether you're sipping on a pre-dinner Chartreuse or a post-dinner port, an expertly blended cocktail starring an obscure…

It’s clear we're in the midst of a broad rebirth for cocktails and the spirits that go in them, driven by the demand for excellence by bartenders, distillers and patrons alike. Bartenders hold the keys in ultimately deciding what gets poured in their bars and the best ones put flavor and experience above the bottom…

There’s something serious about a lime. In the hierarchy of citrus fruits, oranges are the sweet, unsophisticated cousins, sticky, sugary and eager to please. Grapefruits are more tartly nutritious, and lemons are more refreshingly sour. But limes? Limes are tangy and intense, a perfect sharp accompaniment that stands up to tequila and cachaça, gin and…

Sometimes you need a closer. Think flowers on Valentine’s Day, or Mariano Rivera, circa 2008. For Italians, the ultimate summertime closer is limoncello. The impossibly gorgeous Amalfi coast is where lemons want to grow, and resourceful locals use their bounty to create a bright, bracing digestivo that’s sipped from May to mid-September. Now, as warmer…

We talk a lot about loving sherry here at Food Republic. Tempted to get in on it? You might need a primer before you start. Or you might already have fallen for the fortified, and sometimes oxidized wine, from Spain and been burning with questions you never thought you could ask. Either way, here are 17…

You have just had a leisurely four-hour dinner with friends, and while the conversation and food have been fantastic, you find yourself terribly full. But you have had such a good time and don't want to go home just yet. Cue the digestif. This drink is best enjoyed away from the dining table. Find a…