IT’S NATIONAL AMARETTO DAY! LET’S ALL GET SMASHED!
Translated literally, Amaretto means “a little bitter” in Italian. And we can all identify with that mood at times. But the truth is, Amaretto is actually very sweet and flavorful. It’s as if I’m looking in a mirror … so let’s all celebrate this potential kindred spirit on April 19, National Amaretto Day.
Amaretto is traditionally made from a base of apricot stones, peach stones or almonds. All are natural sources of benzaldehyde that gives this liqueur its almond flavor.
We are all familiar with the Amaretto Sour. But we did a bit of digging and found an intriguing idea, the Amaretto Smash! So in honor of the day, we should all get smashed! But not like that … Turns out, smashes are an entire category of cocktails that have been around for more than 100 years.
While there is a bit of flexibility within the definition of a smash, in general it should contain a spirit, ice, mint, sugar, and a fruit. There is, apparently, one unwavering rule of the Smash … all smashes are a juleps but not all juleps are smashes. Sounds like the beginning of a riddle. We’re imbibing in the perfect Amaretto Smash recipe to celebrate this day.
