Jefferson: the best liqueur in the world is Made in Calabria!

29.9.2019

The ship that was supposed to take Mr. Jefferson, an American, from Panama to the port of Genoa began to take water in the middle of the Mediterranean. Within minutes he was sucked into the bottom with his load of bottles filled with sugarcane distillate.

The captain, along with Roger and Gil, two crewmen, driven by the currents, managed to reach the shore.

Americans in Calabria

It was 1871 and the three American shipwrecked men were overthrown by the waves on the Tyrrhenian coast of Cosenza, Calabria, between Fiumefreddo and Fuscaldo.

Escaped from danger, they entered the inland areas, perhaps crossing Serra di Cecio and the summit of Cozzo Cervello, then down to the Valle del Crati, towards the houses.

The Old Customs Warehouse

GIOCONDO AND THE OLD CUSTOMS WAREHOUSE

Between Montalto Uffugo and Torano, in the Ziribba area, Raffaele Trombino, known as “u Giocondo”, managed the Old customs warehouse.

Three small buildings, one used as a dwelling, one for sale, the other for sale.

Jefferson, Roger and Gil found hospitality there: they settled in that warehouse (in dialect “s’accasarano”), working for Giocondo who traded in spices and in the dark, in a secret room, prepared liqueurs with cedar and bergamot.

Jefferson called this place the Perfumery. They set off together with Giocondo before dawn, with the cart and the empty baskets.

Precious Liqueur coming from the “Perfumery”

Four or five hours journey to reach the citrus groves, to the south the “Bergamotto Fantastico” plantations, to the north those of the “Cedri Diamante”.

JEFFERSON, THE BEST LIQUEUR IN THE WORLD

Little is known of what happened next.

Of men who left for other continents and never returned. Of women left, in America, to wait for the raising children and then emigrated to Germany. Of grandchildren that one piece at a time have re-established ties with the descendants of Mr. Jefferson and rebuilt a beautiful story. Even painful.

But what everyone now knows is that Jefferson’s bitter liqueur is the best liqueur on the planet, coming from Calabria!

Bottle and Dropper

And also the best herbal liqueur in the categories of the World’s Drink Awards: in London, a few weeks ago, in 2019, it twice won the highest podium in the international contest that selects and rewards the best spirits in the world: “Great aroma, Bitter at the beginning, that passes. Soft and smooth and very well balanced with a herbal finish “.

Jefferson – Important bitter liqueur – is a mix of fresh botanical herbs, harvested in bloom and processed as it used to be: rosemary from Montalto Uffugo, oregan from Palombara (near Paola), lemons from Rocca Imperiale, oranges, bitter and sweet, and grapefruit from Bisignano, Roccella Ionica bergamot, the Sila gentian. All ineffable essences of Calabria.

Ivano Trombino

AN OLD CUSTOMS WAREHOUSE

But who is the alchemist of the Old Customs Warehouse today? Who recovered the knowledge and secrets of “u Giocondo”?

Thick black beard, curled mustache, 20s bowler and a great desire to tell each other, amid moving and amusing anecdotes: Ivano Trombino is the author of Jefferson’s perfect recipe.

And not only. He spent seven years reconstructing the history of his family (while working as a liqueur representative for the Caribbean Company) experimenting with blends, between a flowering and another of his botanicals.

A really mysterious blend

Now he is cultivating them in a large garden in Montalto Uffugo, in the province of Cosenza, where he has completely reconstructed the Old customs warehouse: a studio, a spice room, another one for infusions. He entrusted the care of citrus fruits to his father Francesco. “Let’s also say that it will be a contemporary place where promoting the culture of drinking and receiving visits from all over the world”, announces Trombino.

His company with its products (bottled near Cuneo, in the ancient Quaglia distillery) has an international niche target, connoisseurs between 30 and 70 years old.

Montalto Uffugo (CS)

ROGER AND GIL

And next to Jefferson’s liqueur (“Natural and authentic bitter liqueur, like Calabria”, of which there is also the Extra Strong mother tincture, in the pharmaceutical bottle with dropper), there are “Roger’s bitter liqueur“, Bitter Extra Strong (“Keep Under Bench”, “Turbid from birth “Is indicated on the label) and “Gil“, a Gin distilled with rural production method, using Juniper and Lemons of Rocca Imperiale (protected under so called IGP mark).

The legend of three Americans

Together they recall the legendary past of the three American castaways.

Frack’s recipe is secret: is the result of three blends prepared from separate infusions, processed with fresh herbs (2 parts of amaricante and 1 vinous).

GIL

Annona, the bet of New Calabrian Farmers

15.9.2019

Calabria wants to focus (also) on the exotic fruits and young farmers take the field.

The Annona Atemoya has a glossy skin rich in tapered but not pointed growths

In recent years, mainly due to climate change, alongside the crops that have always characterized the fruit and vegetable sector of the peninsula, crops of Annona are becoming increasingly popular that until recently were rather rare or even unknown.

According to a study by Coldiretti, its cultivar has gone from a few hectares planted with tropical fruits to over five hundred hectares, with an increase of sixty times in just five years. All thanks above all to the commitment of young farmers who have recovered abandoned land precisely because of climate change and have decided to meet new tastes and new eating habits for consumers.

Annona, variety “Hybrid”

And if in Sicily, among others, mangoes and avocados can be found, in Calabria it is the annona, a fruit originating in Central and South America, to spread over many areas cultivated in the Tyrrhenian area of Reggio Calabria. And it is precisely in the latter area, to be precise in Fiumara, in the province of Reggio Calabria, new farmers have decided to seize the opportunity.

FEATURES

The annona is a fruit originating in Central and South America

As already specified, being a fruit of tropical origin the ideal climate for the growth and maturation of the fruit is the Mediterranean one. However, after several attempts made in other regions of Southern Italy, it has been shown that only and exclusively in the the coast of Reggio Calabria finds the best habitat.

And as regards the characteristics of the soil, the fruit mainly requires medium-textured soils with a prevalent percentage of sand and silt.

Annona, variety “cherimola”

Belonging to the Annonaceae family, the annona is a fruit tree with an expanded and slow-growing habit that usually reaches four to six meters in height as an adult. It has slight branches of gray-brown color with elliptical, alternate, light green leaves.

The flowering starts in the spring immediately after the fall of the leaves and is scalar (until July-August). The flowers appear small, greenish-white and fragrant, usually hermaphrodite in groups of two / three.

It requires entomophilous fertilization through small insects, or pollination is carried out by small insects.

The fruit is mature when it is slightly soft to the touch and begins to show light brown streaks.

The fruit has a soft and creamy white-cream flesh with high sugar content, the presence of numerous seeds (variable depending on the species) and has a sudden ripening after harvest. The average weight of the annona is 210 grams (but it can also exceed 900 grams).

There are three cultivated varieties:

Annona cherimola or Cherimoya,

Atemoya – Geffner variety and to a lesser extent

– A local hybrid variety, which over the decades has gradually developed through the crossing of several other varieties.

While the Annona cherimola is the most valuable and is characterized by a green fruit with a homogeneous cordiform or conical shape, with a very thin skin and medium-depressed homogeneous areoles, the Atemoya – Geffner variety is a hybrid cultivar deriving from the Annona muricata or Annona squamosa and the Annona cherimola. Its peculiarity is that of having a shiny skin rich in slender but not pointed growths.

A delicious pulp

The taste is very different between the various species: the Annona cherimola has hints of banana, pineapple, pear, while the Atemoya has strong hints of milk. It should be said – specific Bellè – that the taste of this fruit is unique is difficult to assimilate to others.

As for the harvest, instead, for the Annona cherimola it is set between September 15th and December 15th, while for the Atemoya between January 1st and March 15th. The harvest is scrupulously done by hand, selecting only the fruits ready for consumption.

The plant is not subject to many pathogenic attacks, the most serious ones are referred to Glomerella and Phytophthora which mainly affect the fruits in juvenile phase causing rot or mummification. To fight them, it is necessary to eliminate immediately the infected parts and intervene with copper oxychloride.

GASTRONOMY

The main gastronomic use is direct consumption of the pulp, with a small spoon. The fruit is deliciously sweety.

However, a rich jam, that is not a trivial aspect, can be made using freshly picked fruit.

But it’s not over here. Another well-played card by young farmers was to make themselves space in the world of ice cream making by participating, among many others, in SIGEP fair (International Gelato, Pastry, Bakery and Coffee) in Rimini in 2018. Yes, because ice cream to the taste Annona is already a reality both in numerous ice-cream parlors of Reggio that of the rest of Italy and Europe, albeit with still small numbers.

A spoon to eat an Atemoya – Geffner

Last but not least, the annona is not only sought after for its “enveloping and intense” flavor, but also for its nutraceutical capacity. It is rich in vitamins, proteins, minerals, but above all antioxidants.

In addition to having an energetic function, it improves the immune defenses, has an anti-age effect, protects from infectious agents, helps blood circulation, regulates intestinal functions, has relaxing effects and fights numerous diseases.