Tuesday 4 September 2012

Curiosity Cabinet #11 - Tiramisu Liqueur

There are plenty of Italian liqueurs available, from from the nuts and bean of Amaretto or coffee liqueurs to the fruit notes of Maraschino and Limoncello, and more besides. This being the Curiosity Cabinet, however, no normal cherry or almond fare would do and so instead we shall focus on a slightly more unusual example: Tiramisu Liqueur.

Tiramisu is an Italian dessert consisting of coffee and alcohol-soaked sponge fingers that are topped with egg white, mascarpone and cocoa. I had expected this to be an ancient Italian treat, but, although accounts vary, most place it as having between been created 30–40 years ago.

The Tiramisu Liqueur is made in Verona, Italy by G.M. Sommacampagna (VR) Italy and combines the flavours of almonds, cocoa, coffee and various herbs and spices. It is bottled at 24% ABV.

On its own
Nose: Coffee with hints of brandy and vanilla.
Taste: Quite smooth to start, followed by notes of coffee, cream and vanilla; this reminds me of the liquid that Tiramisu sponge is typically soaked in. There are also some chocolatey notes toward the end, making this very much a dessert liqueur that tastes a good deal like Tiramisu.

Floating Tiramisu
[50ml Tiramisu Liqueur, 1tbsp Ice-cream, Top up with soda]
This drink reminds me of a cross between a coffee float and a chocolate soda: it’s very frothy and a bit like an adult milkshake. Good flavour of tiramisu on the finish.

White Italian
[20ml Vodka, 20ml Tiramisu Liqueur, 20ml Semi-skimmed milk]
This is very nice. What can I say? The extra milk transforms this drink into a liquid Tiramisu cake/dessert. The vodka adds some strength, but also reduces the sweetness nicely, making an all-round rather lovely drink: chocolate, coffee and vanilla. Yum!

In Conclusion
The Tiramisu Liqueur is well made, very tasty and I think has applications for both sweet cocktails and puddings (drizzle over ice-cream, etc.). I would also be interested to try it as part of an actual Tiramisu - I suspect that it would either be magnificent or only so-so.

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