Some amari are invented. This one was rediscovered. Its origins trace to a 16th-century brotherhood of monks in Turin's contrada Dora Grossa, today's Via Garibaldi, who were known throughout the city for their learning in the medicinal virtues of plants, roots, and fruits. From their work came the Depurativo San Simone, built on a formula dating to 1583 and dispensed through the pharmacies of Turin and Piedmont well into the 1940s — a remedy for the changing seasons, made in an age when the apothecary's craft was still entirely by hand.
In the early 1950s, the original recipe resurfaced in the archives of the Antica Officina Farmaceutica San Simone. The intent shifted from remedy to pleasure, and after years of careful refinement the modern Amaro San Simone emerged around 1960 — produced in the very same pharmacy where it is still made today. It was meant for pharmacies alone, but its success came quickly and without a single advertising campaign. Loyal drinkers carried it from one generation to the next, and word of mouth alone pushed it into full-scale production. The founder's methods have remained intact ever since.
Little has changed, and that is precisely the point. Thirty-nine herbs, roots, and botanicals — most sourced from the surrounding territory and chosen for their tonic properties — are macerated, infused, and filtered over months, then cold-blended by hand. No additives, nothing superfluous. The whole cycle, from the steeping of the herbs to bottling, still takes place in the historic Turin opificio, with the same principal suppliers the house has worked with for over half a century.
In the glass it pours a deep caramel brown at 26%, balanced between sweet and bitter. Candied citrus, herbs, and delicate florals give way to a viscous, gently sweet palate marked by anise and fennel, closing long, herbal, and refreshing. The torinese drink it over ice; it is equally at home at room temperature or lightly chilled at the close of a meal.
The wider world has lately confirmed what generations of Italians already knew. In 2025, San Simone earned the Grand Gold Medal at the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles — the competition's highest distinction, awarded in blind tasting among 2,598 entries judged by 140 international experts — followed by a Gold Medal and 91 points at the 2026 London Spirits Competition.
Born in Turin, refined over a half-century, and only now arriving on this side of the Atlantic, Amaro San Simone is one of those rare bottles that built its reputation the slow way: glass by glass, and entirely on its own merit.
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