Ortolan Rosolio

27% ABV

Producer Notes:
Ortolan Rosolio is a carefully-crafted, Californian expression of heirloom roses and other botanicals in the tradition of French Apéritifs, Italian Amaros, and the historic Rosolios of Torino.

We created Ortolan Rosolio to be a versatile aperitif to complement classic cocktails and be enjoyed on its own, over ice. We make it using over 25 different types of heirloom, garden roses, farmed sustainably in California, each which lends its own scent, flavor and color to the blend. We balance it with a few other botanicals to add balance and length. The result is complex, ethereal, and wholly unique.

 We get it that you’ve probably never had a rosolio, and likely have never heard of one before, either.  Neither had we until after we started playing with our garden roses using old distilling techniques and thought, “Hey, this is actually really good and I’ve never had anything like it!  Someone must have done this before.” 

 Turns out, like lots of things, Italians had done something similar for centuries up until the beginning of the 1900s and called it Rosolio.  While traditionally rosolios can be made from many different regional ingredients and usually eschew bitter ones, some rosolios—especially those from Torino—incorporate roses heavily in their recipes. We tend to think that whereas amaros focus on strong flavors and attack the palate, rosolios emphasize aromas and lightness on the palate.

Ortolan Rosolio is unique as a rosolio in that it is a distinctly modern, distinctly Californian take on the traditional category.