Nocino, a Green Walnut Liqueur from Emilia-Romagna #ItalianFWT

For the first time, since I began participating in the Italian Food, Wine, & Travel group, I am not writing about wine! Okay, I am still writing about boozy goodness, but it's not made with grapes this time. My Italian teacher at Cal was from Bologna. And I remember her talking about this liqueur, though she never brought any to share with the class!

This recipe takes between eight to twelve weeks to create. So, I typically start in July to be able to pour it for Thanksgiving! Keep reading as we delve into the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy...

The Posts

• Lynn from Savor the Harvest highlights two of the region’s main attractions in Italy’s Heart and Soul of Wine and Food.
• Jennifer of Vino Travels shares her discovery of Romagna Albana: The 1st White DOCG of Emilia Romagna.
• Jill, author of L’occasion, serves as our guide to a favorite local tradition with Ancient + Native: Rural Festival Emilia.
• Katarina, host of Wines of Italy Live Stream and Grapevine Adventures, explores Podere Palazzo – An Organic Winery in the Heart of Romagna.
• Lauren at The Swirling Dervish delves into The Winemaking Traditions of CantinaBraschi.

The Conversation

The live chat occurs on September 2 at 11 am EDT. If you're reading this early enough, you can follow the discussion on Twitter; search for the hashtag #ItalianFWT. It’s always a good time, with plenty of wine recommendations, food pairing ideas, and travel tips.

Nocino

For this edition of #ItalianFWT, I was inspired to make my own nocino, a green walnut liqueur that is originally from the Emilia-Romagna region in Italy. Years ago I had traipsed around town with a master forager and cocktail craftsman Katie Blandin Shea. I was researching for an article that appeared in the Fall 2015 issue of Edible Monterey Bay about her. Click to read: Local Libations - Field to Glass. 

As I wasn't brave enough to forage on my own walnuts, I ordered mine from Local Harvest. They have become my go-to for seasonal, harder to come by produce items. But here's what green walnuts look like on the tree...

Ingredients

• 2 pounds green walnuts (they are in season, in California anyway, from June to July)
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• zest from 1 organic lemon (I used Meyer lemon because my parents have a tree in their yard)
• 9 all spice berries
• 4 cardamom pods
• 1 nutmeg, split in half
• 1 vanilla bean, split
• 1 L vodka
• 3 C organic granulated sugar
• 3 C water

Procedure

Part I
Quarter the green walnuts lengthwise. Add the cut walnuts, cinnamon sticks, lemon zest, all spice berries, cardamom, nutmeg, and vanilla bean to the lidded glass container. Pour the vodka over the top of the ingredients. Cover and give the container a good shake and let it sit for 6 to 8 weeks.

Part II

Strain the liquid from the solids using a cheesecloth lined strainer. You can strain it again if you like. Pour the strained liquid back into the container.

Add the sugar and water to a medium saucepan and cook until all of the sugar has dissolved. Let simple syrup mixture cool to room temperature. Add the cooled simple syrup to the liquid already in the container. Cover and give the mixture a good shake. Let sit for another 6 to 8 weeks.

Part III

After this second aging you can bottle and drink your nocino. The longer you let the bottled nocino set, the more smooth it will taste. Serve chilled or at room temperature. Cin cin.

As this post goes live, I have just finished the second step. I am looking forward to serving this for our Thanksgiving feast.