By Daniela Sfara
Let’s play word association.
I say licorice, and you say…
Twizzlers? Cough drops? That one candy that always got left behind in the Halloween bag?
Now I say liqueur. And most people pause. Because the idea of drinking licorice, not as a syrupy candy or bitter medicine, but as an elegant after-dinner ritual, is something most have never considered. But in Calabria, especially along its Ionian coast, licorice is far from novelty. It’s history, heritage, black gold pulled from the soil. And in a little bottle I carried delicately home from Rossano, it’s something far more powerful: memory, ritual, story, and centuries-old uses, including as a love potion.
I know that just got your attention.
The bottle is Axiropizia. A jet black, uncompromising pure licorice liqueur made by a passionate boutique producer named Perla di Calabria. Before I tell you about its taste, deep, earthy, boldly bitter with an almost sacred herbal complexity, you need to understand the place it comes from.
Rossano is not the Italy most tourists know. It doesn’t sparkle with polished piazze or curated ceramic storefronts. It’s raw, lived in, layered. As one of Calabria’s ancient cities, Rossano was a Byzantine outpost, a center of early monastic life, and the home of one of Calabria’s many great treasures, the Codex Purpureus, a 6th-century manuscript written in silver and gold ink on purple dyed parchment, hence purpureus.
It’s one of the oldest surviving illustrated New Testament manuscripts in the world, and since 2015 is recognized by UNESCO as part of the Memory of the World Register.
This tells you just how ancient a city it is.
Rossano is also the spiritual home of the Madonna Achiropita, the Byzantine icon that gives this liqueur its name. Achiropita derives from the Greek term Acheropoietos, meaning “not made by human hands.” According to legend, this sacred image of the Madonna wasn’t painted by an artist but miraculously appeared.
Such icons are rare and deeply venerated. This Madonna is linked to miracles and the protection of the city. You feel her presence in the town’s churches, in the stories, even on the label of the bottle.
The relationship between Rossano and licorice is centuries old. The plant, glycyrrhiza glabra, is a species native to the region and thrives in Calabria’s salty, mineral-rich soil. Locals call this particular variety of licorice cordàra.
Early Benedictine monks introduced licorice to aid digestion around the year 1000. Over generations, the roots were harvested and processed into powders, blocks, tinctures, candies, and tonics.
Licorice wasn’t just a sweet as we know it today. It was medicine, ritual, and protection. In many homes, a shard of black licorice was as common as olive oil or salt, chewed to calm stomachs, ward off evil, inspire affection, or even as a love potion.
By the early 1700s, noble families began to formalize production. The Amarelli family, among the most famous, still operates today, preserving centuries-old traditions and welcoming visitors to see the process firsthand, followed by a tour of the Museo della Liquirizia Giorgio Amarelli, housed in a historic residence built in the 15th century, continually owned by the family. Visiting the museum is more than touring and tasting; it is stepping into an ancient world of antique machinery and documents dating back to 1445, declared of historical importance by the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities.
An evening tour is also available and fascinating. If you didn’t think the presence of a miraculous icon was possible to feel, you’ll quickly change your mind as you walk through the museum.
Where Amarelli embodies polished, centuries-old tradition, Perla di Calabria, the producer behind Axiropizia, channels a deep, reverent connection to Calabria’s heritage and sacred roots.
Founded in 2019, it isn’t just about the bottle. It preserves flavors, gestures, and herbal lore once practiced by monks and passed down by nonni. Practitioners, known as rootworkers or conjure doctors, have long used herbs and roots like these in rituals to attract fortune, ward off harm, or communicate with spirits, a lineage reflected in the care poured into this liqueur.
Perla di Calabria’s process is simple. Wild Calabrian licorice roots are hand-harvested. No synthetic anything. Just root, alcohol, time, and reverence. The result is a liqueur that doesn’t soften its edges. It doesn’t try to win you over with sugar. It invites you to sit down, slow down, and listen, to the land, to the bitterness, to the depth, and to the icon.
In a world obsessed with easy sweetness, Axiropizia is unapologetically bold. It reminds us that flavor, real flavor, asks something of us. It’s a conversation, not a performance.
I’ve sipped it neat, room temperature, after long dinners. I’ve stirred it into espresso for an extra kick. I’ve drizzled a reduction over roasted figs and added drops on my tongue to heal a sore throat. I’ve cooked and baked with it. Just about the only thing I haven’t done with it, is make a love potion.
However you use it, it remains honest, grounded, and ancient.
Much of Italy’s beauty derives from the southern ancient region of Magna Graecia. Calabrian licorice is a protected variety, recognized with a European PDO in 2011. Despite its significance, many outside Italy don’t know it exists. Calabria has quietly been the engine behind Italy’s licorice supply for over 300 years.
What I love most about Axiropizia is that it doesn’t modernize or dilute this legacy. It embraces old ways and offers them forward, not as nostalgia, but as revered continuity.
We live in a time of speed, fast meals, fast trips, fast trends. Calabria resists that. Its food, its land, its rhythm that slow us down. Products like Axiropizia are anchors, keeping you rooted. They remind you of ritual, slowness, and the Italy that exists off the main roads, breathing a little deeper and tasting a little darker.
Next time someone says “licorice,” think of Rossano. Coastal winds, twisted roots, old monks, miracle icons. Pour a small glass of black liqueur, let it warm your tongue, and listen to the story it tells.
For those who want to delve into ancient history with modern flavours, here’s a recipe I think you’ll enjoy.
Calabrian Licorice Digestivo
(for when you want to close your evening with depth and mystery)
You’ll need:
• 1 oz vodka
• 1 oz espresso, cooled to room temperature
• 1 oz Perla di Calabria’s Axiropizia licorice liqueur
• Optional: ice, for those who prefer a cold digestivo
Mix all ingredients. Pour into a digestivo glass. Sip slowly. Let the bitterness settle. Imagine yourself somewhere in Calabria, where the wind smells like citrus and salt, and the past is always just a taste away. – VV
