●THE AMARO ATLAS

RECORD china-martini · EVIDENCE GRADE B · UNCLAIMED · LAST VERIFIED 2026-07-09

China Martini

Pessione, Chieri (Turin) · Italy · 45.015, 7.764

REGION: italyTRADITION: Amaro italianoEST. 1863WEBSITE ↗

ZONE 01 — VERIFIED FACTS

Founded
Martini & Rossi S.p.A. founded 1863 in Pessione, Chieri, Turin, PiedmontC·4
China Martini created
First created in 1887 as a quinine-bittered aperitif liqueurB·1
ABV (current retail)
25% vol per current bottleofitaly.com listing, 70cl format; independently corroborated as a reduction from the historical 31% strength, made for commercial reasonsC·3
ABV (historical, 1980s-90s / Difford's tasting review)
31% vol / 62 proof; superseded by the current 25% vol formulationB·1
Ownership
Owned by Bacardi Limited since 1993; UK distribution via Bacardi UKB·1
Defining botanical
China Calisaia (cinchona) bark gives the product its name and characteristic bitternessB·1
Production method
Herbs and aromatic essences extracted by infusion with alcohol, historically distilled in an old English pot stillB·1
Bottle identifiers
700ml bottle, barcode UPC 8000570301417, screw/Stelvin cap closureB·1

ZONE 02 — AI-COLLATED SUMMARY

AI-ASSISTED · FROM GRADED PUBLIC SOURCES

China Martini is a spirit-based, cinchona-bittered aperitif liqueur produced by Martini & Rossi S.p.A. (Bacardi Limited) at Pessione, near Turin, first created in 1887. It takes its name and defining bitterness from China Calisaia (cinchona) bark, blended with other herbs, roots and orange peel, extracted by alcohol infusion and historically finished in a pot still. The product's strength has fallen over time, from 31% vol in the 1980s-90s to 25% vol currently, apparently for commercial reasons. One retail source's ingredients panel names Trebbiano wine as a raw material, which conflicts with every other source checked (including the product's own category placement as a liqueur rather than an aromatised wine) and is most likely carried over from a shared template across Martini & Rossi's broader, partly wine-based range; it is noted here rather than treated as authoritative.

AI-collated from the graded sources below; operator review pending. Wine-base discrepancy in one retail source flagged for operator attention; does not currently override the weight of corroborating spirit-based evidence.

ZONE 03 — PRODUCER-SUBMITTED NOTES

This record is unclaimed. This space opens to the producer when they claim it. Producer claiming is coming soon.

PRODUCTS ON RECORD

Amaro China Martini (China Martini)

25% ABV · 700ML

BOTTLE IMAGE
ADDED BY THE PRODUCER

SUBCATEGORY bitterRING coreTRADITION Amaro italianoSELF-IDENTIFIED “Bitter”

A spirit-based, quinine-bittered aperitif liqueur named for the bark of China Calisaia (cinchona), blended with other herbs, roots and aromatic essences and extracted by infusion with alcohol, historically finished in an old English pot still. Clear deep mahogany amber in colour with ruby-red highlights. Traditionally served with two parts slightly sweetened lemon juice and a splash of soda, or neat/on ice as a digestif. Current retail listings (bottleofitaly.com) confirm the product is now bottled at 25% vol; independent Italian sources corroborate the strength was reduced from 31% (its 1980s-90s specification, also the figure in Difford's Guide's historical tasting review) to 25% for commercial reasons. One retail source's raw-materials panel names Trebbiano wine among China Martini's listed ingredients, but this is uncorroborated elsewhere, contradicted by Difford's Guide's own category placement (Liqueurs, not aromatised wine) and by the EU's spirit-drink classification of amari; it most likely reflects a shared ingredients template across Martini & Rossi's range, some of which (e.g. Martini Chinato) genuinely are wine-based. Treated here as a spirit-based amaro, distinct from Martini's wine-based vermouth and chinato lines, pending fully independent confirmation.

BOTANICAL MATRIX — 5 GRADED EDGES

  • China Calisaia (cinchona bark) · defining bittering agentB·1
  • Orange peel/zest · aromaticB·1
  • Herbs (unspecified) · flavouringC·3
  • Roots (unspecified) · flavouringC·3
  • Rhubarb · aromatic noteC·3

DESCRIPTORS

  • bitter ▮▮▮▮▮B·1
  • orange zest ▮▮▮▮▮B·1
  • quinine ▮▮▮▮▮B·1
  • liquorice/espresso spice ▮▮▮▮▮B·1

SERVES

China Martini & Lemon

canonical
  • · 2 parts slightly sweetened lemon juice
  • · 1 part China Martini
  • · splash of soda

Build over ice and top with sodaB·1

Neat / on the rocks

canonical
  • · China Martini, neat or on ice

Serve chilled or over ice as a digestifC·3

Hot water & lemon zest (winter serve)

producer
  • · China Martini
  • · hot water
  • · lemon zest

Dilute with hot water, add lemon zestC·3

ZONE 04 — COMMUNITY TASTING NOTES

RESERVED — community notes open in V2 with moderation and bias handling. The contributions ledger is already recording.

COMMON QUESTIONS

Where is China Martini made?
China Martini is made in Pessione, Chieri (Turin), Italy, and was founded in 1863.
What style of amaro is China Martini?
On The Amaro Atlas, Amaro China Martini (China Martini) is recorded in the core ring, bitter subcategory, within the Amaro italiano tradition. The producer describes it as "Bitter".

SOURCES — A–D GRADED (5)

  1. [1]BChina Martini — product review, tasting notes and production information · Difford's Guide (Odd Firm of Sin) · press · accessed 2026-07-09Editorial review with full tasting notes, ABV (31% — confirmed as the historical 1980s-90s specification, since superseded), bottle size, barcode, production method (infusion + pot-still distillation), producer/owner chain (Martini & Rossi S.p.A., owned by Bacardi Limited), 1887 product creation date, and category placement under Liqueurs (not aromatised wine).
  2. [2]BMartini & Rossi S.p.A. — producer profile · Difford's Guide (Odd Firm of Sin) · press · accessed 2026-07-09Producer-level corroboration of company identity and Bacardi ownership.
  3. [3]CAmaro China Martini 70cl — product listing · Bottle of Italy · database · accessed 2026-07-09Retail catalogue listing showing current 25% vol / 70cl formulation, ingredient list (herbs, roots, cinchona, sugar, alcohol), colour, serve style. Its expanded raw-materials panel additionally names Trebbiano wine, uncorroborated by any other source checked and possibly a templated component shared across Martini & Rossi's wider (partly wine-based) range; treated with caution.
  4. [4]CMartini & Rossi — producer page · Bottle of Italy · database · accessed 2026-07-09Corroborates founding year 1863, Piedmont region, and Martini & Rossi's product range including Amaro China Martini.
  5. [5]AMartini & Rossi official website · Bacardi Limited / Martini & Rossi · producer-official · accessed 2026-07-09Official brand site; China Amaro product page currently redirects to homepage, so used here only for corporate/brand identity confirmation, not product-level detail.

A producer-official / regulatory · B reputable published · C secondary · D community/unverified