"... I was pushed to one of the legendary places of Torino of those times. Dressed as a Jesuit I went to Caffè Al Bicerin, near the Consolata, to get that great smelling glass of milk, cocoa, coffee and other aromas. I still did not know that Bicerin would have written Alexandra Dumas a few years later ..." Umberto Eco, Il Cimitero di Praga (Prague's Cemetery), Bompiani 2010.
It is believed that the origins of the Bicerin, literally short glass, are attributed to the historic place of Torino Caffè Al Bicerin (of 1763), located in Piazza della Consolata, which has been named after and obstinately preserves its traditional recipe.
In fact, this is a historical hot and non-alcoholic beverage typical of Torino, an evolution of the eighteenth-century "bavarèisa", a tasty drink served in large round glasses, made up of a mixture of coffee, chocolate and sweet milk cream, sweetened with syrup.
Initially, the three ingredients were served separately, but there were also three variants: ‘pur e fiur’ (today's cappuccino), ‘pur e barba (beard)’ (coffee and chocolate), 'n poc' d tut (or a bit of everything), with all three ingredients mixed together. It was then the latter formula to prevail over all the others.
A curiosity, the drink was always accompanied by "bagnati" (wet), homemade biscuits of fourteen different shapes.
More information: http://bicerin.it/
