Why Bicerin is Italy’s Love Letter in a Cup

The original Bicerin at Caffe Al Bicerin photo credit Lisa Waterman Gray

For a warm, sweet taste of Turin, Italy locals and visitors need look no further than the legendary Bicerin beverage served at Caffè Al Bicerin – a culinary destination since the 1700s. The café’s signature drink has long been a customer favorite. This delicious combination of espresso/coffee, chocolate, and frothed milk layers arrives in a small round ‘bicerin’ – a glass without a handle. Customers still crowd this café daily, for an iconic taste experience.

But, despite the delicious marriage of ingredients, the original bicerin is not meant to be a ‘blended’ recipe. Rather, this classic version is as well-known for its layered appearance as it is for luscious flavor. This bicerin reaches peak seductiveness when the ingredients envelope your palate simultaneously, with a variety of densities, temperatures, and tastes. Some people say bicerin resembles an Irish coffee – but without any alcohol.

At Caffè Al Bicerin, sustainable chocolate from Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Cameroon, Brazil, and Indonesia yields low acidity after plenty of cook-time in copper pots. The establishment also incorporates a special espresso in its own caffeinated layer.

Bicerin in the Beginning

At Caffe Al Bicerin photo credit Lisa Waterman Gray

Passed from one generation to the next, the recipe for this historic drink has been closely guarded. But today’s modern iteration at this Italian café began as an updated version of an eighteenth-century beverage – bavareisa. It incorporated coffee, chocolate, milk, and syrup.

While Caffè Al Bicerin initially served each ingredient individually, they eventually made their way to a single glass, leaving behind less popular combos of only coffee and chocolate, or a beverage that resembled a modern-day cappuccino. At that point, the popular new beverage took its name from the glass in which it was served.

Various versions of bicerin gradually became so popular in other local coffee bars that the beverage eventually became a tasty ‘symbol of Turin.’ In 2001, the Official Bulletin of the Piedmont Region declared bicerin a “Traditional Piedmontese Drink.” The hot beverage also reached the “List of Piedmont’s traditional agri-food products.”

Where to Find Bicerin

Ten minutes’ drive from Caffè Al Bicerin, Eataly Torino Lagrange crafts their take on this iconic beverage. Other Eataly locations also serve their style of bicerin.

But it’s become increasingly difficult to find a U.S.-based version of the layered beverage. Owner of Portland, Oregon’s Woodblock Chocolate Manufactory Charley Wheelock frequently indulged in bicerin iterations during a visit to Turin/Torino. He later added his version to the menu for their in-house café.

“[Bicerins] are so beautiful in the glass,” Wheelock says. “It’s so fun to see the layers. They look like they could be a sundae. They’re everything you want, packed together.

“The combination of different mouthfeels and temps and flavors is truly sublime. You have to get one, try it, enjoy it, and figure out your system [of tasting]. You learn a technique for how you want to consume it.” However, a new café owner removed bicerin from the menu when he rechristened it as Spella Caffè , late last year.

There was also a time when customers could order a version of bicerin at Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Seattle or New York, and other Starbucks Reserve locations in Seattle and San Francisco, but it is no longer on the menu. However, there is still a popular version of bicerin inside Manhattan, NY-based Bar Pisellino, an all-day Italian café.

Bicerin at Home

Although nothing quite matches the original combination of bicerin flavors from Caffè Al Bicerin, you can make a version of the classic at home. Cookbook author Aida Mollenkamp of Salt & Wind created a recipe that closely resembles the original. She suggests making a larger batch of the hot chocolate and then layering the drinks to order. She graciously shared her recipe with us.

Bicerin: Classic Italian Hot Chocolate And Espresso Drink Recipe

1 cup whole milk or plant-based milk

7 ounces dark chocolate

4 shots freshly brewed espresso

1 cup chilled heavy cream

2 tablespoons unrefined cane sugar

Unsweetened cocoa powder for garnish

Make The Hot Chocolate Ganache: Place milk in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until simmering, about 4 minutes. Add chocolate and whisk until completely melted and well incorporated, about 2 minutes. Set aside until ready to use.

TIP: The hot chocolate ganache can be made up to a few hours ahead of time. Rewarm over low heat until pourable, carefully whisking as needed until smooth.

Prepare The Glasses: Place a cocktail shaker in the freezer until well chilled, at least 10 minutes. Meanwhile, fill four heatproof glasses with very hot tap water and set aside.

Layer The Drink: tart by emptying out the hot water and adding the hot chocolate ganache. To do so slightly tilting the glass, slowly pouring in one quarter (about 1 1/2 to 2 ounces) of hot chocolate ganache into each glass.

Next carefully pour in 1 shot of espresso to each glass. Alternatively, you can float the espresso by placing the tip of a spoon perpendicular to the inside edge of the glass, turn the curve of the spoon toward the ceiling, and slightly angle the spoon downward.

Slowly pour the espresso down the spoon toward the inside of the glass.

Shake The Cream: Remove the shaker from the freezer, add the cream and sugar, and shake vigorously until frothy, at least 20 times.

Serve The Bicerin: Spoon the shaken cream on top of the hot chocolate in each glass and serve immediately.

Bicerin Liqueur

Last but not least, paying homage to the original warm beverage, BicerinUSA also Bicerin Di Giuandijotto liqueur, with subtle hazelnut flavor and 15% alcohol and Bicerin White Chocolate liqueur. These award-winning, gluten and dairy-free liqueurs have been trademarked since 1996 by Vincenzi Distilleries, in Italy, and are available throughout Europe and in many non-European countries.