Calabria / Cosenza
Bergamotto Lemonade
Calabrian bergamot lemonade
This is a lemonade made with bergamot, the perfumed Calabrian citrus, alongside lemon and cold water.
Tested and written by Erika A. Cochran
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Prep
15 minutes
Cook
10 minutes
Serves
1.5 litres
Difficulty
Easy
Region
Calabria
What you’ll need
Ingredients
Written for 1.5 litres.
Showing quantities at 1× the original recipe.
- 2 bergamots, unwaxed
- 3 lemons
- ⅞ cup sugar
- ⅞ cup water, for the syrup
- 5⅛ cups cold water
- Ice, to serve
At the stove
Instructions
Pare the zest from one bergamot and one lemon.
Heat the sugar and ⅞ cup water with the zest until dissolved, then simmer 5 minutes and cool.
Juice the bergamots and lemons and strain.
Combine the cooled syrup, the juice and the cold water. Taste and adjust.
Chill thoroughly.
Serve over ice with a strip of zest.
Recipe notes
Bergamot is more perfumed and more bitter than lemon — the lemon juice balances it.
If bergamot is out of season, use all lemon and a strip of orange zest instead.
Context
Bergamot is grown almost entirely on the Ionian coast of Calabria, and its juice, long treated as a by-product of the essential oil trade, is now used in drinks and cooking.
Sources: Editorial adaptation of documented Calabrian citrus traditions, Casa Magnelli Kitchen
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