Grand Rapids Business Journal: Spirits maker and coffee company partner on liqueur

December 10, 2018| By Ehren Wynder |

A local distillery and a coffee roaster have teamed up to produce an Italian liqueur.

Grand Rapids-based Long Road Distillers will release Amaro Pazzo tomorrow at a special release party from 4 p.m. to midnight at the distillery, at 537 Leonard St. NW.

Statewide distribution will follow the in-house release, and the liqueur will be available year-round.

Amaro Pazzo was created in collaboration with Madcap and utilizes Madcap’s Reko coffee as one of the primary ingredients.

The release party will feature half-off the new liqueur and coffee cocktails made with Amaro Pazzo and Madcap coffee.

“Few put as much time and dedication into their craft as Madcap,” said Jon O’Connor, co-founder and co-owner, Long Road Distillers. “Amaro Pazzo is an ode to our shared commitment to take the time to do things right and to craft the exceptional. We can’t wait to introduce people to what we’ve been able to create together.”

Amaro is a traditional Italian herbal liqueur, commonly enjoyed before or after dinner. It is typically bittersweet in flavor and has some sugar added for balance.

Madcap’s Reko coffee comes from the Kochere region of Ethiopia. After tasting coffee varieties from all over the world, Madcap and Long Road agreed that Reko would impart the most complementary flavors for Amaro Pazzo, most notably citrus, lemongrass and ginger.

“The team at Long Road has a special respect and intention for the ingredients they work with,” said Ryan Knapp, coffee director, Madcap. “Collaborating with our friends at Long Road was a natural fit with our similar philosophy on how we approach ingredients and flavor.”

Long Road Amaro Pazzo, is also made with myrrh, turkey rhubarb, two types of orange, wormwood and a blend of other ingredients.

It is bottled at 57 proof, or 28.5-percent ABV.