Aranciata

Italy produces a fine range of foods and beverages – they always seem to suggest hot sun, the Rennaissance, ‘La Dolce Vita’ and so on. One way to assuage thirst, especially during the summer months is to purchase a can of Aranciata, run the freezing cold can round a hot forehead and then glug the contents.

Aranciata is a sparkling soft drink, a soda based on orange juice and sugar. The Italians have embraced it since the 19302 and its juice content is strictly defined in Italian food regulations. It must contain at least 12% w/w orange juice and most commercial offerings contain between 12% and 16%.

The product was formulated back in 1930 when Commendatore Ezio Granelli who owned the firm of San Pellegrino SpA first thought of this beverage. It was originally intended as a whimsy for a trade fair in Milan, a bottle of orangeade to complement the still and sparkling waters that the business had been producing for many years. The drink became an icon over the 1930s and was mimicked in other parts of Europe.

In the Second World War, the German part of Coca Cola was producing aranciata under license but found itself unable to do so when supplies became extremely restricted. To overcome the problems of restricted procurement, Fanta, a play on the word Fantasies was developed which has subsequently gone on to be a famous product in its own right.

Today, aranciata has become a drink which has solidly gained ground throughout Europe and North America and spawned a few juice variants. There is a version called aranciata rossa produced by San Pellegrino which is based on blood orange juice (3% w/w) with 13% orange juice rather than solely on traditional Italian oranges. We also have Pompelmo which is 16%w/w grapefruit juice and Limonata. All variants are available in 330ml cans with a characteristic foil cover.

In terms of flavour, Aranciata has a sweet, acidic and quite juicy orange flavour whilst its brother which contains blood orange is slightly less sweet with a balanced orange note. The lemon and grapefruit variants are very sharp but ideal for more adult palettes.

http://www.sanpellegrinofruitbeverages.com/int/en/default.aspx