Vin Santo – Tuscany sweet wine for after dinner Vin Santo is a dessert wine rather than a digestive drink, strictly speaking, but since it is served after dinner and usually in alternative to an amaro, it makes this list!
Grappa. Grappa is a very popular Italian after-dinner drink. It's usually colorless, but can also be pale to deep yellow if aged in barrels.
Digestifs (pronounced die-jest-EEFs) can be fortified wines like vermouth or Sherry. They can also be herbal liqueurs including Chartreuse or Cynar; bitter liqueurs like amaro; aged liquor like whiskey; or sweet liqueurs such as limoncello or Grand Marnier.
Brandy and Cognac are some of the most common choices of digestif out there. It's a distilled spirit made from fermenting the juice of fruits, most often grape juice.
Germany is a beer-drinking country, but when it comes to an after-dinner drink, Germans reach for liquor and liqueurs. Eau de vies (spirits made from fruit) are common, as are bittersweet liqueurs.
Underberg is a digestif bitter produced at Rheinberg in Germany by Underberg AG. It is made from aromatic herbs from 43 countries that undergo inspections and are formulated based on a secret recipe of the Underberg family, whose members are personally responsible for the production of the drink.
Akvavit is an important part of Nordic drinking culture, where it is often drunk during festive gatherings, such as Christmas dinners and the Midsummer celebration, and as an aperitif. In Iceland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany aquavit is chilled and often drunk in a single gulp from a small shot glass.
After a traditional Italian meal or dinner you are likely to be offered a 'digestivo' aka an Italian digestive drink (digestif). Italian digestivo are alcoholic after dinner drinks, usually served in a small glass, straight, as a shot.
An aperitivo is a pre-meal drink; the experience of aperitivo is a cultural ritual. Derived from the Latin aperire, the tradition is meant “to open” the stomach before dining. Accordingly, for centuries Italians have said cheers – cin cin – over drinks and appetizers in the early evening hours between work and dinner.
Aperitivo refers to an early evening drink that is meant to “open the appetite.” Often made with bitter liquors because an aperitivo is meant to prime your stomach for dinner – the main event.
Averna is an amaro, or a bitter liqueur that many Italians drink after dinner as a digestif. Amari (plural of amaro) can have bitter, sour, or bittersweet taste as a result of the aromatic herbs, bark, fruit, roots, rinds, and more that are combined to create the cocktail.
After a long day of skiing in the mountains followed by a cheesy fondue or raclette, a génépi is the perfect digestif to finish off the day. You can even make Génépi at home by steeping the aromatic flowering tops of the herb artemisia in vodka or pure grain alcohol.
Often known as digestifs (or aperitifs in France) it is very common in Spain to drink a shot of liqueur after a large meal. The most common ones are licor de hierba (an herbal liqueur) and licor de limón (lemon liqueur).
As mentioned so far, Japanese tea is usually taken before and/or after meals, but people drink Japanese tea also during a particular meal.
Ouzo is a delicious anise-flavored drink from Greece. The spirit is generally consumed as an aperitif after dinner and undergoes a rigorous distillation process.
Austrians have been sipping on Schnaps for centuries, and usually as a digestif after a meal. Despite its high alcohol content, which is usually above 30%, the popular drink is surprisingly smooth and easy to drink.
Simply put, digestivo is an alcoholic drink served at the end of the meal which over time, in Italy, has become a proper tradition.
From the first drink to the fourth round, don't forget a quick “Prost!” or “Ein Prosit” before taking your first sip. Always make eye contact when toasting. Don't toast with water. It's considered bad luck in Germany.
Limoncello on its own is categorized as a digestif liqueur, meaning it's meant to be sipped on its own after a meal to aid in digestion. This is how limoncello is commonly used in Italy—after a meal, people stay at the table, either after dessert or during dessert, sharing limoncello and toasting to good health.
Digestifs (pronounced die-jest-EEFs) can be fortified wines like vermouth or Sherry. They can also be herbal liqueurs including Chartreuse or Cynar; bitter liqueurs like amaro; aged liquor like whiskey; or sweet liqueurs such as limoncello or Grand Marnier.
However, after 11am, it is considered more appropriate to switch to a stronger, richer coffee such as an espresso or a macchiato. These coffees are typically consumed without any added milk or sugar, and are meant to be sipped and savored rather than gulped down.
Thou shalt only drink cappuccino, caffé latte, latte macchiato or any milky form of coffee in the morning, and never after a meal. Italians cringe at the thought of all that hot milk hitting a full stomach. An American friend of mine who has lived in Rome for many years continues, knowingly, to break this rule.