The firm
A refreshing liquer
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This year Limoncello di Fiorito was acclaimed as one of the best limoncellos in the world. Benno Fiorito and his brother Franco are now looking to increase production of this lemon liqueur based on a family recipe.
In Italy everyone makes their own limoncello. “Every family has its own recipe,” says Benno Fiorito (age 31). And he should know, as his grandfather is Italian. During a visit to his family in Sicily in 2007, Fiorito tasted a glass of homemade limoncello. He was impressed. “You can buy limoncello in the Netherlands, but it doesn’t taste good,” says Fiorito. He asked his aunt for the recipe and then had a go at making it himself.
After a few tips from the family, he produced a good end-product. “When friends came to dinner they’d say: ‘Great, will you be serving the limoncello?’ Strangers who had heard about it by word of mouth asked if they could order a few bottles.”
And then his hobby began to get out of hand. And it was a hobby, because at the time Fiorito was studying Systems Engineering, Policy Analysis and Management, with a specialisation in Transport and Logistics. His graduation project involved redesigning the KLM cargo terminal, and he is currently a demand chain planner at DSM, where he is optimising the supply of microbial cultures. When catering establishments began to show an interest in the limoncello, Benno and his brother Franco, a 33-year-old tax economist, thought about starting a business. “I thought we could rent our own premises and set up a production site. I’ve had experience with that at DSM.”
But this wasn’t so easy, because of all the red tape involved. “The limoncello is now made by a distillery in Schiedam. I’m involved in the production and product quality.”
The Fioritos chose a bottle with a swingtop cap, as limoncello should be drunk ice cold, and corked bottles do not chill well. And then things really took off. “We found a great Italian restaurateur – Toscanini in Amsterdam – who thought our limoncello tasted really good. He agreed to include us in his product range”. Other businesses soon followed.”
The Fioritos then heard about the International Wine and Spirits Competition and submitted a couple of bottles in May of this year. “I was honeymooning in Sardinia at the end of July when my brother phoned to say we’d won the silver medal! Enthusiasts can now taste the liqueur in some 20 to 30 restaurants. (CvE)
