Bittermens Boston Bittahs 5oz

Bittermens began in 2007, when founders Avery and Janet Glasser, then living in San Francisco, were invited to a bitters making event at the 209 Distillery. The positive response from bartenders in San Francisco, New York, and Boston convinced the couple to formalize the business, and by 2010 they were producing bitters commercially in Somerville, Massachusetts. Boston Bittahs itself came together the following year, developed in the summer of 2008 under the working name Summer Bitters before being renamed to mark both the season and the Glassers' return to Boston after fourteen years away. Bittermens has since relocated several times, eventually settling in Portland, Oregon, while remaining a small, largely two person operation.

Boston Bittahs is built around a base of high proof neutral spirit infused with a heavy dose of citrus alongside chamomile flower, a less common pairing among cocktail bitters that tend toward baking spice or dried fruit. The citrus and chamomile are extracted through maceration, producing a concentrated, aromatic bittering agent meant to be used in small dashes rather than consumed on its own, in keeping with the broader cocktail bitters category Bittermens works in alongside its other lines like Xocolatl Mole and 'Elemakule Tiki.

The color is a thin, free flowing green brown. The aroma leans heavily on bright citrus, layered with the distinct floral, slightly herbal scent of chamomile. On the palate it is dry, bitter, and faintly salty, with citrus oil and chamomile trading off against each other. It's built for fizzes, sours, and other citrus forward cocktails, and pairs particularly well with pisco or scotch.