Livorno Punch (Ponce alla Livornese)
Ingredients
- 1 barspoon Powdered sugar
- 1⁄6 oz Boiling water
- 1 fresh Lemon peel
- 1⁄2 oz Caribbean blended rum aged 6-10 years
- 1 oz Exprè Caffè Italiano
Method
Glassware:
Serve in a Shot glass
Method:
<b>1.</b> Place thick-cut coin-sized lemon zest in base of glass and cover with sugar.
<b>2.</b> Ideally, use the steam wand of a coffee machine to steam and moisten sugar while also warming glass (alternatively, add a splash of boiling water).
<b>3.</b> MUDDLE lemon and sugar in base of glass (with small muddler).
<b>4.</b> POUR rum into glass.
<b>5.</b> TOP with a shot of espresso dispensed straight into your cocktail from the machine.
History:
Said to date from the 1700s, this is the signature ponce (Italian for punch) of the Italian port city of Livorno on the west coast of Tuscany.
In a letter to his friend Nando, poet Giosuè Carducci (1835-1907) wrote: "We drank a lot of white, o Nando, we drank a lot of black punch and with profound knowledge, we never left a cup or glass without seeing the bottom."
If you want to properly experience a Ponce alla Livornese, then head to the Civil Bar in Livorno, a historic caffè founded in the 1890s, this is the drink's spiritual home.
Review:
Run and coffee with zesty lemon. A drink to challenge the Espresso Martini.
