What is a digestif?

You drink an aperitif before the meal and a digestif after it; the difference lies in the moment, not in a fixed list of drinks.

Aperitifs are usually lighter and often dry or bitter: vermouth, sherry, a sparkling wine or a bitter aperitif. Digestifs are generally stronger and fuller.

Some bottles do both. An amaro or a herbal bitter is served before the meal in one region and after it in another.

Grappa, calvados, cognac, armagnac, oude jenever, amaro and herbal bitters are the classics at the end of the meal.

Grappa and amaro come from Italy. Cognac, armagnac and calvados from France. Oude jenever and herbal bitters from the Netherlands, of which beerenburg is the best-known form.

Sweeter bottles belong too: port, an aged rum or a liqueur with dessert. The choice depends mostly on what was on the table.

Health claims are prohibited on drinks with more than 1.2 per cent alcohol, and nutrition claims may only refer to a reduced alcohol or energy content.

That rule is in Article 4 of the European regulation on nutrition and health claims. It applies to the label, to advertising and to an online shop.

A digestif is therefore mainly a habit at the table and a matter of taste. What there is to say about it concerns origin, ageing and flavour.

Serve a digestif in a small measure, 2 to 4 centilitres, in a glass that holds the aroma.

Grappa goes in a tulip glass at 15 to 18 degrees, aged grappa at around 20 degrees. Calvados, cognac and armagnac are served at room temperature in a glass with a bowl.

In the Netherlands, oude jenever and herbal bitters are often served cold, from the fridge or the freezer. In bars and restaurants that is the custom for herbal bitters.

Calvados goes with apple pie, an aged rum or an amaro with dark chocolate, and an oude jenever or an aged grappa with cheese.

The rule behind those choices is simple: let the drink be as sweet as the dessert, or sweeter. Otherwise a dry grappa next to a sweet pudding comes across harsher than intended.

If you are serving coffee, grappa is the classic choice. In Italy the little glass after coffee is called ammazzacaffè.