The folks at Black Cloud Bitters Co wanted to bring an Orange bitter to the market that was unique and complemented their existing flavour line-up. To do this they decided to pair Cara Cara oranges with a hint of Wintergreen and a secret family pickling spice base. To honour both the bitterness of the Orange and the pickling undertones we chose to bless the bitter with an Italian name. Pickles played an important role in Christopher Colombus’s discovery of America in 1492. Around the time of Columbus, many transoceanic voyages were thwarted because crews suffered from scurvy, a disease caused by a lack of vitamin C. Colombus’s ship stocker, a man named Amerigo Vespucci, stored ample quantities of vitamin C-rich pickles on the Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria, helping to prevent scurvy outbreaks on the historic voyage across the Atlantic. As it turns out, America’s name is allegedly derived from the pickle merchant Vespucci, who became an explorer.

Accordingly, they paired the Italian word “Arancia” (Orange) with “Vespucci” to name this special cocktail bitter.