Scarlet Caffè Japanese Amaro

I love coffee, so it’s particularly disappointing that most coffee liqueurs fall flat, landing somewhere between saccharine and acrid. But leave it to Scarlet, the storied distillery in the Kanagawa prefecture of Japan, to finally deliver an amaro worthy of coffee’s beautiful flavors. Master blender Tatsuya “Moto” Motonaga, who runs the distillery out of a 100 year old house, starts with a blend of rare Ethiopian and Panamanian Geisha coffees, which he then macerates in a neutral sugarcane spirit infused with 23 different botanicals, including vanilla bean, cinnamon, caraway, wormwood, spearmint, orange peel, angelica root, licorice, and verbena. The result is stunning, simultaneously bright and rich with the perfect balance of bitter and sweet. Enjoy in a cocktail, as a digestif, or with a renewed appreciation for the power of coffee.