San Simone Amaro - TORINO, ITALY. 700ml
Fiat, Lavazza, Martini & Rossi and Superga are just a few iconic Italian companies headquartered in Turin, the capital of Piedmont. But aside from Juventus F.C., Italy’s winningest soccer team, you’ll find no greater pride and affection for a homegrown brand than you will for Amaro San Simone. Even in a country steeped in amari, San Simone’s distinctive terroir and limited, regional availability make it an in-demand suitcase bottle for expats and visitors alike.
Count me among the converted. My first sip of San Simone marked the end of an hourslong alfresco dinner on a humid summer night in a crowded, table-filled Turin boulevard. In 2015, I was in Italy researching my book Amaro. Fulvio Piccinino, a local drinks historian and author who had graciously spent the day guiding me around the city and countryside, refilled my glass from the iconic black-and-gold bottle, explaining how San Simone was the “pride of Turin,” found in every bar, restaurant, café, enoteca and grocery store in the region. Two weeks later, when I managed to pack a dozen bottles of amaro into my luggage, I already regretted that San Simone wasn’t among them. (Thankfully, a friend later gifted me a bottle.)
Piccinino notes that when traveling in other parts of Italy, asking for San Simone, even when you’re certain the bar doesn’t carry it, is a way to let the bartender know you’re from Turin. “For my generation, San Simone was sort of a status symbol,” says Piccinino. “Saturday night would start with a coffee and a glass of Sansi. During the week, when you talked to friends, you’d say, ‘Shall we go have a San Simone?’ Like in England when you say, ‘Let’s go out for a beer.’”
