Cynar
An Italian bitter liqueur made primarily from artichoke, with a deep, vegetal, faintly sweet bitterness - key to modern classics like the Trident.
Origin
Padua, Italy, invented by entrepreneur Angelo Dalle Molle and introduced commercially in 1952.
History
Angelo Dalle Molle developed Cynar (named for Cynara scolymus, the artichoke's scientific name) around 1949, aiming to build an amaro around the artichoke, long valued in folk medicine, and introduced it to the public in 1952 with a memorable early ad campaign showing an actor sipping it amid a busy street, marketed as a remedy "against the wear-and-tear of modern life." Gruppo Campari has owned and produced Cynar since 1995, and it's become a favorite modern bartender's ingredient for its unusual savory, vegetal bitterness, unlike almost anything else in the amaro category.
Flavor profile
Bittersweet and distinctly vegetal, with an earthy, artichoke-and-herb character unlike most other amari.
Tasting notes
A savory, faintly bitter earthiness dominates, with caramel sweetness underneath and a lingering vegetal quality genuinely reminiscent of artichoke - unusual enough that it reads almost as a savory ingredient as much as a sweet one, making it popular in modern riffs on classic bitter cocktails.
Substitutes
- Amaro Montenegro or Averna, for a different but comparably approachable Italian amaro, understanding the artichoke note will be missing.
- Campari, for a more straightforwardly bitter substitute without Cynar's vegetal character.
- A different vegetal-leaning amaro, if one is available, for the closest match to Cynar's unusual profile.
