Customer Reviews:
 I liked it on the first sip September 28, 2008
Stacey Hasenfratz (Ferndale, Mi)
If you like chai, I think you'll like this. I didn't find it to be bitter or undrinkable. Pleasantly spiced and refreshing.
An exhilarating tastebud experience June 16, 2007
V. Brown (pa)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I first stumbled upon chinotto at a Italian food distributor. We decided to purchase this particular product because the cashier said that it was by far her favorite, although an acquired taste. I now know why. My first sip was.....interesting to say the least. The flavor journey passes through sweet, sour, and unknown tastes. Initially my favorite element of the sip was the middle, the beginning too sweet, the end too bitter. After many tries, I can now appreciate every aspect of this unusual but tantalizing beverage. I encourage anyone who wants to venture beyond the traditional and insipid American drinks to buy a 6 pack, your opinion will change.
 Ignore your first reaction... December 27, 2006
Jonathan Van Matre (Austin, TX United States)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
This drink shares a lot of its flavor profile with the aperitif Campari. If you like Campari, you'll almost certainly like Chinotto. As for the rest of you, read on!
The first time I tried Campari, it was on a lark, because a character in Sarah Caudwell's novel Thus Was Adonis Murdered drank it frequently during a trip to Venice. My first impression was that it was bitter, complex, and a bit overwhelming. It wasn't awful, but I couldn't really bring myself to like it. Eventually, I tried it again, and knowing this time what to expect I was better able to appreciate its multi-faceted complexity.
I encourage you to practice the same perseverance with Chinotto, whose primary ingredient - a bittersweet citrus fruit - is also a major part of the Campari formula. You will almost certainly NOT enjoy your first bottle. Fear not...there are six of them, so take advantage of the opportunity to experiment with your palate. Wait a few days and try again.
You won't know until the second or third tasting whether you are a budding Chinotto aficionado or a detractor in the making.
The reward, for those of you who take the time to discover a love of it, is a soda whose balanced taste makes it a far better companion to cuisine than the sickly sweet sodas we're accustomed to in America. Chinotto marries excellently with the sorts of meals you'd normally have wine with...not something one could easily say of Coke or Pepsi.
Ironically, American sodas (particularly the colas) often have complex and interesting formulas, but all that complexity is obscured by an excess of sugar (or sugar substitutes). Chinotto has sweetness, but it's a balanced sweetness that lets the other ingredients shine through. It's a drink that wakes up your whole tongue, which makes it excellent as an aperitif or a with-dinner drink.
The only reason I give it four stars is that the spirit Campari, and the bottled pre-mixed CampariSoda cocktail (10% alcohol content, very difficult to find outside Italy) both have an extra splash of genius in the formula. But for those times when you can't be drinking alcohol, Chinotto nearly reaches the same heavenly height.
You'll eiither love it or hate. August 16, 2006
Andrew Steckley (Vancouver, WA)
As these ratings suggest, this is a beverage people either love or hate-- no in between. I got introduced to it by my Itallian girlfriend in high-school and then did not see it again for years. 25 years later on a trip to Italy i found it again. (It is a common soft-drink you can found everywhere. Fanta makes a popular version of it. San Pellegrino makes the 'elite' version.
I had been under the impression it was made from artichokes because it has a taste somewhat similar in flavor to Cynar, which is an alcoholic drink made from artichokes (also Italian I believe). If you don't like the taste of Chinotto, you will HATE Cynar. If you like Chinotto, you might try the slightly harsher Cynar.
But Chinnotto is my 'nectar of the gods' and I savour every miniature bottle of it.
I love Chinotto July 21, 2006
gumnut (tx)
I first tasted Chinotto when I was in Australia and became addicted. Despite looking like a cola drink, it's made from the Chinotto orange. The orange is often described as having a "bitter" taste. I liken the Chinotto flavor to the aperitif Campari, but non-alcoholic!
Chinotto is my favorite drink and I hope it gets back in stock very soon.
|
