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168 NOCINO

Handcrafted from Nogano's Green Walnuts

34.0% vol

100ml ¥1,540 Out of Stock
500ml ¥7,480 Out of Stock

Sales start from 10:00 on Sunday, February 25th

NOCINO is a dark brown walnut liqueur that is a specialty of Emilia-Romagna in northern Italy. Unripe green walnuts are picked in early summer, added to alcohol to remove bitterness and scum, and spices and herbs are added to give it a fragrant and slightly bitter taste. In the Middle Ages, NOCINO was also used as a medicinal drink in Italian monasteries.

Last year, when I was making NOCINO with Japanese walnuts, I had a hard time getting the walnuts I wanted to buy, so I asked my friend Saru-kun from Nagano Prefecture, who said, "There are so many walnuts in Nagano, so let's make NOCINO with Nagano walnuts." We named it "Naganochino."

At the end of June, we visited PECCARY BEER in Takato-cho, Ina City. Behind the brewery there is a stream, and along the stream there are several large walnut trees with yellow-green nuts already waiting for us. The yellow-green nuts are covered with down and are easy to crush as they have not yet hardened inside. We then harvested the walnuts in two batches.

When you put it in your mouth, it has a bitter tannin taste that makes your mouth feel tight, but you can still soak it in vodka.
After a few weeks, the liquid turns pitch black. It has a bitter taste and a fragrant aroma. After a month, the liquid is strained and spices such as vanilla, cloves, and cardamom are added, as well as cinnamon branches, mandarin peel, and coffee cherries.
After another month, the bitterness faded away and a rich, nutty flavor and the aroma of spices and herbs emerged. Finally, honey from the local Otaki area was added to sweeten the flavor, resulting in a fragrant, slightly bitter black liquid.

It can be enjoyed chilled as a sweet dessert drink, or as a hot drink, which is a seasonal treat.

specification

Product: Liqueur Ingredients: Walnuts (produced in Nagano Prefecture), vodka, spices, herbs Alcohol content: 34%
Capacity: 100ml/500ml
Artwork by Aureliusz Kowalczyk

Limit two items per product (size) per person.

25 February (Sun.) 10:00 - on sale

NOCINO is a dark brown walnut liqueur, a specialty of Emilia Romagna in northern Italy. It is characterized by its savory and bittersweet taste, made by taking unripe green walnuts in early summer, adding them to alcohol to remove their bitterness and acrid taste, and adding spices and herbs. In the Middle Ages, NOCINO was also used as a medicinal drink in Italian monasteries.

Last year, when I told my friend from Nagano about the difficulties I had in obtaining walnuts to make NOCINO with Japanese walnuts, he said to me, "Nagano has so many walnuts that you would be amazed, so let's make NOCINO with Nagano walnuts. The name of the product is "Naganocino.
At the end of June, we visited PECCARY BEER in Takato-machi, Ina City. A stream runs behind the brewery, and several large walnut trees along the stream were already waiting for us with yellow-green fruit. The yellow-green berries, covered with hair, were not yet hardened inside and could be easily crushed.

They have a bitter taste of tannin that makes your mouth water when you put them in your mouth, but they are soaked in vodka as they are.
After a few weeks, the color of the liquid turns black. After one month, the liquid is strained and spices such as vanilla, cloves, and cardamom are added, as well as branches of nickel, tangerine peels, and coffee cherries.
After another month, the bitterness took a back seat and a dense, thick, nutty flavor and aromas of spices and herbs emerged. Finally, honey from the local Otaki area was added to sweeten the taste, resulting in a black liquid with a savory, bittersweet flavor.

Chilled well, it is a luscious dessert drink, and using it in hot drinks is also a joy typical of this time of year.