Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1187612
NORTHSHOREMAG.COM 28 DECEMBER 2019 PHOTOGRAPHS BY SARAH JORDAN MCCAFFERY E AT + D R I N K Fabrizia processes about 150,000 lemons a year to make its limoncello. Fabrizia Spirits makes limoncello the old-fashioned way. BY JEANNE O'BRIEN COFFEY PUCKER UP E AT + D R I N K You have to peel a lot of lemons to make limoncello—at least if you're sticking with tradition. So it's lucky Giuseppe can remove the zest perfectly from 40 lemons per minute. "Giuseppe" is the nickname given to the inanimate eighth member of the team at Fabrizia Spirits in Salem, New Hampshire, a sophisticated fruit-peeling machine imported from Italy. It takes off all the zest, plus a sliver of the pith—just enough to give the company's limoncello a tiny edge. The bright, citrusy aroma of real lemons permeates every corner of the headquarters at Fabrizia, where they are processing some 150,000 lemons a year for their flagship limoncello, as well as several other completely handcrafted products. Philip Mastroianni, producer/owner at Fabrizia and second-generation Italian Ameri- can, started making limoncello after a visit to relatives in Calabria, inspired by his cousin's bright liqueur made from her own lemon trees. Back stateside, Mastroianni's Uncle Joe declared his nephew's handmade limoncello the best he'd ever had, urging Mastroianni to bottle it for sale. So that fancy fruit-peeling machine is named in his honor, Mastroianni says with a laugh. Limoncello, a bright, citrusy-sweet Ital- ian liqueur, is traditionally made from just four ingredients: lemon zest, a simple syrup of sugar and water, and a neutral spirit like grain alcohol. Italians like to drink it as an aperitif or digestif and will usually keep a bottle in the freezer.