Maraschino liqueur

Marasquin

What it is

The Marasca is a small sour cherry of the Dalmatian coast, and the distillation takes the whole fruit - stems, leaves and stones together - which is where the nutty bitterness comes from. Luxardo, founded at Zadar in 1821, ages it in ash rather than oak precisely so that it stays colourless, then sweetens it; the straw jacket on the bottle is its old shipping armour.

In the kitchen

It is dry for a liqueur and will not sweeten a syrup on its own, so in a savarin soak count it as flavour and leave the sugar where it is. A teaspoon through a fruit salad reads as almond rather than as cherry, which is exactly the point of it.

Goes with

Cherry Sour cherry Amarena cherry in syrup Cream Vanilla Dark chocolate Peach Pistachio

Same species

Bergeron apricot Almond Almond flour Almond oil Amardine Amarena cherry in syrup

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