Caffè Corretto

Caffè corretto is an Italian drink made by "correcting" a shot of espresso with a small amount of liquor, most commonly grappa but also sambuca or brandy. It can be prepared by dropping a little spirit directly into the espresso or by serving a shot of alcohol alongside so the drinker can add as much as desired. Orders are typically specified by the spirit - un caffè corretto alla grappa, alla sambuca or al cognac - or by local nicknames such as corretto di Spadino. The term corretto literally means "corrected" and functions as an Italian phraseme. The beverage also spread to Eritrea during Italian colonial rule, where local spirits like areki or cognac are used.

Many European and Latin American coffee traditions use the same idea of pairing coffee with a local spirit: Spain has carajillo (cigaló in Catalan), Portugal café com cheirinho, France café-calva or champoreau, Scandinavia kaffekask/karsk/kaffegök, and Mexico café con piquete. A regional Italian variant from Veneto called rexentin (or raxentin) involves rinsing the cup with the spirit after finishing the espresso and drinking the wash, the name deriving from the local word for "to rinse."