Between one descent and the next on the snowy slopes, or simply to hit the reset button in the warmth of a mountain lodge: it’s not the time to order an herbal tea or hot chocolate. The inhabitants of the Alpine regions will certainly recommend the bombardino – a cocktail with high alcohol content (enough to make your cheeks warm).
From Mottolino with warmth
The bombardino can be considered the Italian Irish Coffee. It was born in Livigno, a well-known ski resort in the province of Sondrio – where it seems that in the seventies, a young Genoese, not really accustomed to the cold mountain winter, arrived to run the Mottolino lodge, and he immediately started looking for survival strategies to combat the cold. And the most successful remedy was a hot cocktail made with milk, whisky and eggnog. It has been said that the first person that tasted the drink yelled out, "Damn! It's a bombshell!", thus creating the cocktail’s name – the bombardino, meaning bombshell in Italian.
The original recipe of bombardino
Over time, the recipe’s ingredients have evolved, though two elements are always present in a bombardino: the high alcohol content (reaching up to 30% vol.) and the hot zabaglione (liqueur-based egg yolk, sugar and Marsala). Other than this, things have changed a bit: milk has been replaced by cream, for example, and whiskey, by brandy. Here’s the original recipe:
Ingredients
2/3 eggnog
1/3 brandy
Whipped cream
Method
Heat the eggnog in a saucepan without bringing it to a boil and remove from the heat.
Add brandy.
Pour into a glass and garnish with whipped cream.
Sprinkle with cocoa powder to taste.