Italian Spirits – What to Drink in Florence and Tuscany

Italian spirits are part of a wider drinking culture that includes aperitifs, digestifs, cocktails and regional wines. In Florence and Tuscany, a Negroni before dinner, a small grappa after a meal or Vin Santo with cantucci each belongs to a different culinary tradition.

Not all of these drinks are technically spirits: Vin Santo, for example, is a Tuscan wine. What connects them is their place around the Italian table. This guide explains what to try, when these drinks are traditionally enjoyed and which traditions have particularly strong connections with Florence and Tuscany.

Drinking Culture in Florence and Tuscany

Drinks in Italy are closely connected with food and social occasions. An aperitivo can mark the transition from afternoon to evening, wine accompanies a meal, and a small digestif may bring dinner to a close.

This context matters more than any rigid set of rules. Florence has historic cafés, neighbourhood bars, wine bars and contemporary cocktail venues, each representing a different aspect of the city’s drinking culture.

The broader picture is explored in our Drinks of Florence – Wine, Cocktails and Tuscan Traditions, while this article concentrates particularly on spirits, liqueurs and the drinks commonly associated with aperitivo and digestivo.

Aperitivo and Digestivo: What’s the Difference?

The distinction between drinks served before and after a meal is one of the most useful things to understand when visiting Italy.

Aperitivo

An aperitivo is enjoyed before dinner and traditionally prepares the appetite for the meal to follow. Drinks with bitter, herbal or aromatic characteristics are particularly common.

Typical choices include:

• Negroni
• Americano
• Aperol Spritz
• Campari Spritz
• Vermouth-based drinks

The drink is only one part of the ritual. Small snacks often accompany it, while conversation and meeting friends are central to the experience. Our Art of the Italian Aperitivo explores this tradition in greater detail.

Digestivo

A digestivo is served after a meal. Grappa and amaro are classic examples, while other liqueurs vary considerably according to region and personal preference.

The word reflects the traditional idea that these drinks aid digestion. Today, it is better understood primarily as a culinary and social custom rather than a medical claim.

Vin Santo may also conclude a Tuscan meal, although it is important to distinguish it from distilled digestifs: it is a wine.

The Negroni: Florence’s Famous Cocktail

Few drinks are as closely associated with Florence as the Negroni. Its traditional origin story places its creation in the city around 1919.

According to the widely repeated account, Count Camillo Negroni asked bartender Fosco Scarselli at Caffè Casoni to strengthen an Americano by replacing the soda water with gin. The resulting combination of gin, Campari and sweet vermouth developed into one of the world’s classic cocktails.

As with many cocktail histories, some details of the story have been debated. Nevertheless, the Negroni’s association with early twentieth-century Florence is deeply established.

Our dedicated article, The Negroni – The Florentine Story Behind Italy’s Famous Cocktail, looks more closely at the people, places and history behind the drink.

Vin Santo: Tuscany’s Traditional Dessert Wine

Vin Santo is not a spirit. It is a traditional wine produced in Tuscany and other parts of central Italy, commonly from grapes that have been dried after harvest before fermentation.

Styles range from dry to distinctly sweet depending on the appellation and producer. The wine is strongly associated with the end of a Tuscan meal and is famously served alongside cantucci.

The familiar practice of dipping cantucci into Vin Santo is widespread today, although visitors should not assume that every producer considers this the ideal way to taste a carefully made wine.

For its production, history and different styles, see our dedicated guide to Vin Santo – Tuscany’s Traditional Dessert Wine.

Tuscan Grappa

Grappa is a distilled spirit made from grape pomace: the skins, seeds and other solid material remaining after grapes have been pressed during winemaking.

This makes grappa closely connected with Italy’s wine culture. In Tuscany, where viticulture plays such an important role, pomace from wine production provides the raw material from which the spirit is distilled.

Grappa can be clear and relatively young or matured in wood, producing significant differences in aroma, colour and flavour. It is normally served in small quantities after a meal.

Our Tuscan Grappa – From Vineyard Tradition to Digestivo guide explains the production process and its relationship with Tuscany’s vineyards in greater detail.

Amaro: Italy’s World of Herbal Liqueurs

Amaro means “bitter”, but it describes an extraordinarily varied family of Italian herbal liqueurs rather than one specific recipe.

Different producers use combinations of herbs, roots, spices, citrus peel and other botanicals. The resulting drinks range from relatively sweet and aromatic to intensely bitter.

Well-known examples include Averna, Montenegro, Ramazzotti and Fernet-Branca. These are national Italian products rather than specifically Tuscan specialities, but amaro is commonly available in restaurants and bars throughout Florence.

The variety is part of the appeal. Someone who dislikes one amaro may enjoy another because their flavour profiles can be remarkably different.

Sambuca

Sambuca is a sweet Italian anise-flavoured liqueur commonly served as a digestif. It can be drunk neat and is also sometimes added to coffee.

A traditional presentation known as sambuca con la mosca serves the liqueur with coffee beans. Various symbolic explanations have become associated with the number of beans, but these should be regarded as tradition rather than fixed historical rules.

Sambuca is Italian rather than specifically Tuscan, so visitors will encounter it in Florence without it being part of the region’s distinctive local production in the same way as Vin Santo or Tuscan grappa.

Limoncello: Popular in Florence, but Not Tuscan

Limoncello is another drink that requires a geographical distinction. It is strongly associated with southern Italy, particularly Campania and the area around the Sorrento Peninsula and Amalfi Coast.

Today it is served throughout Italy and is easy to find in Florence. Usually offered chilled after a meal, its bright lemon flavour makes it particularly popular during warmer months.

It belongs in this guide because visitors will frequently encounter it, not because it is a traditional Tuscan speciality.

Vermouth and the Florentine Aperitivo

Vermouth occupies an important place in Italian aperitivo culture. This aromatised wine combines a wine base with botanicals and is both enjoyed independently and used in classic cocktails.

It is one of the three components of the Negroni alongside gin and Campari, linking the history of aromatised wine directly with Florence’s best-known cocktail.

Our article on Vinsanto, Vermouth and the Florentine Aperitivo Tradition explores this wider relationship between wine, aromatised drinks and Florentine social life.

How These Drinks Fit into an Italian Meal

Understanding the sequence of an Italian meal makes the role of these drinks much clearer. Aperitivo generally takes place before dinner rather than forming part of the meal itself.

Wine may accompany the courses at the table. Coffee normally follows towards the end, and a digestivo may then provide the final small ritual after eating.

This sequence is flexible rather than compulsory, but it explains why ordering a Negroni and ordering a grappa represent two quite different moments. Our guide to the Traditional Italian Meal explains the complete structure.

How to Order in Florence

You do not need specialist vocabulary to order confidently in a Florentine bar or restaurant. A few simple phrases cover most situations.

• Un Negroni, per favore. – A Negroni, please.
• Un Americano, per favore. – An Americano, please.
• Un bicchiere di Vin Santo. – A glass of Vin Santo.
• Una grappa, per favore. – A grappa, please.
• Un amaro, per favore. – An amaro, please.

In many restaurants, asking simply for un amaro will lead to the waiter suggesting the varieties available.

Where to Enjoy Drinks in Florence

The setting can be as interesting as the drink itself. Florence offers everything from neighbourhood bars and traditional wine bars to sophisticated cocktail venues.

For a connection with the city’s social and cultural history, the Historic Cafés of Florence are particularly interesting. Establishments around Piazza della Repubblica once attracted writers, artists, musicians and intellectuals as well as ordinary café customers.

For wine, a traditional enoteca offers a different experience, often with the opportunity to compare Tuscan wines by the glass. And for cocktails, contemporary Florence has developed a lively bar scene alongside its historic establishments.

There is therefore no single “authentic” place to have a drink in Florence. A neighbourhood bar, an elegant café and a specialist cocktail bar can each reveal a different side of the city.

Italian Spirits and Tuscan Wine

It is impossible to understand Tuscan drinking traditions without recognising the dominant role of wine. Spirits and liqueurs occupy particular moments around the meal, but Tuscany’s vineyards provide the broader agricultural and cultural setting.

Chianti is the most internationally recognised example, while Brunello di Montalcino, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and numerous other wines demonstrate the diversity of Tuscan viticulture.

Our Wines of Tuscany – The Complete Guide provides the starting point for exploring the region’s major wines, territories and traditions.

Interesting Facts About Italian Spirits

• The Negroni is traditionally associated with Florence and Count Camillo Negroni.
• Vin Santo is wine, not a distilled spirit.
• Grappa is distilled from grape pomace left after winemaking.
• Amaro is a category containing many very different herbal liqueurs.
• Vermouth is an aromatised wine and an essential ingredient in a classic Negroni.
• Limoncello is widely available in Florence but originates from southern Italian traditions rather than Tuscany.
• Aperitivo and digestivo describe different moments around a meal.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most famous cocktail from Florence?

The Negroni is Florence’s best-known cocktail. The traditional account places its creation in the city around 1919.

What is the difference between an aperitivo and a digestivo?

An aperitivo is enjoyed before a meal, while a digestivo traditionally follows it. They describe different drinking occasions rather than strictly defined categories of alcohol.

Is Vin Santo a spirit?

No. Vin Santo is a traditional wine, commonly associated with Tuscany and often served towards the end of a meal.

Is grappa Tuscan?

Grappa is produced in several Italian regions rather than belonging exclusively to Tuscany. Tuscan producers nevertheless make grappa from pomace generated by the region’s important wine industry.

Is Limoncello traditional in Tuscany?

No. Limoncello is associated primarily with southern Italy, although it is now widely served in Florence and throughout the country.

What should I drink before dinner in Florence?

A Negroni, Americano, Spritz or vermouth-based drink are classic aperitivo choices. There is no requirement to choose alcohol, however; non-alcoholic aperitivo drinks are also common.

Why Florence’s Drinking Traditions Are Worth Exploring

Florence’s drinking culture is interesting because it connects local history with wider Italian traditions. The Negroni belongs particularly closely to the city, Vin Santo leads into Tuscany’s wine culture, and grappa links the vineyard with the final moments of a meal.

Other drinks, such as amaro, Sambuca and Limoncello, remind us that what is served in Florence is not necessarily Florentine in origin. Modern Italian drinking culture combines regional traditions with products that have become popular throughout the country.

Understanding these distinctions makes ordering more interesting. Instead of simply choosing an Italian drink, you begin to recognise where it comes from, when it is traditionally enjoyed and how it fits into the wider culture of the table.

Further Reading on Firenze Casa

• The Drinks of Florence – Wine, Cocktails and Tuscan Traditions
• The Negroni – The Florentine Story Behind Italy’s Famous Cocktail
• The Art of the Italian Aperitivo
• Vin Santo – Tuscany’s Traditional Dessert Wine
• Tuscan Grappa – From Vineyard Tradition to Digestivo
• Vinsanto, Vermouth and the Florentine Aperitivo Tradition
• The Wines of Tuscany – The Complete Guide
• The Historic Cafés of Florence – Coffee, Culture and Literary Life

References

• International Bartenders Association – Negroni and classic cocktail standards.
• Accademia Italiana della Cucina.
• Comune di Firenze – Historical resources on Florentine food and drink culture.
• Ministero dell’Agricoltura, della Sovranità Alimentare e delle Foreste (MASAF).
• Consorzio Vino Chianti Classico – Tuscan wine history and traditions.