The Secret to That Bright-Red Drink? Little Bugs.

I am sure there are other substitutes for coloring this liquor that is natural. It's interesting to note that I rarely see this aperitif being imbibed in Italy, which has a awful unpleasant taste.

Cochineals are not beetles! They are scale insects and belong to Homoptera. Beetles belong to Coleoptera. Cochneals are related to aphids, white flies, etc.

John Troia, finds it curious that people would object to imbibing insects. Sentence made me laugh. I can give you a personal practical reason: Bugs are not kosher! So as an Orthodox Jew anything containing Carmine is off my list.

Does this irrational fear of insect products also apply to honey?

Surprised that with the fascinating history behind cochineal, there is so little in this article about the actual insect or how they are harvested. It's a parasite that survives on the moisture of cacti, and if you see it in the wild you'd never guess it was the source of such a vibrant red dye: in appearance it's a white powdery/waxy growth on the surface of the cactus, looking almost like a mold or fungus. It's only if you take a bit of that white substance and crush it that you'll see a surprising scarlet hue, all the more astounding because it seems to come from such a bland, whitish bit of sticky fuzz.

The article's squeamishness about cochineal dye in a beverage should resonate with eight-year-olds.

Cochineal insects are not beetles—they’re scale insects. That’s like confusing a horse with a fish. Please look farther than Google when you’re doing research!

Hah! And for the squeamish amongst you, who believes that there isn't more than a little bit of bugs in all of your wine?

A request from the Center for Science in the Public Interest urging the FDA to require ingredient labels to explicitly state that carmine is derived from insects and may cause severe allergic reactions and anaphylactic shock was declined by the FDA. Food industries were aggressively opposed to the idea of writing "insect-based" on the label, and the FDA agreed to allow "cochineal extract" or "carmine". Apparently people don’t want to know they’re eating insects. Well some people need to know as a matter of life and death.

I stopped consuming alcohol 15 years ago. But when I did, Campari on crushed ice was my favorite. I sometimes wondered if the insect derived red dye rendered Campari to be non-Kosher ??

Thanks for this great and informative article. I’ve had Campari straight and in my Negronis (and Boulevardiers, etc) since my passion for cocktails began several years ago. Knowing they no longer use carmine, I’m glad to know that for the past year, I’ve been using St. George’s Bruto Americano - which separate from the point of this article, I think is a superior product. That said, should I ever come across a vintage bottle of Campari, I’m now inclined to buy it.

Bottled juice blends used to use cochineal- I’m fascinated by pigments, & I read labels. If odorless & taste free it sounds like an ideal for additive.

Many people are allergic to Carmine, including myself. I was in the hospital overnight because I ate food dyed red with this chemical and fainted in a parking lot. I had hives that covered my entire body. Just because something is all natural doesn't mean its safe.

I find the final comment misleading. Many people avoid foods because of the harm to the “food,” not because of the harm it might do to them if they consume it. Most vegans, for example, are not in it for their own health but for the health of others. Personally, I am glad to know about the needless harm of this ingredient and will avoid drinks with such colorings. I will stick to sambuca, which is delicious with coffee beans.

Sheesh, cochinille is one of the few dyestuffs that stands the test of time in textiles, lovely pinks to deep reds. Actually, long ago, when I was a kid, the church camp I attended every summer referred to the red Kool-Aid type drink we got at meals as "bug juice". As a textile artist later, I realized what they referred to - our bug juice was colored with carmine. Hey, its non-toxic and a pretty color.

Carmine is a single dye molecule/chemical that has been purified and is far from the female cochineal beetle it originated in, much like the blue dye indigo used to color blue jeans. As such it is much like similar artificial colors except for the source. Cochineal has also been used to color strawberry yoghurt, pink coffee frappes, as well as in the robes of Catholic cardinals and the uniforms of British “red-coat” officers.

Full disclosure: I am an American citizen, I spent the first 24 years of my life in France. I find it interesting how my fellow Americans can be squeamish about some food items, especially based on their names. It’s a good thing that what the Italians call “funghi” is called “mushrooms” in English, thus not depriving us from eating those delicious items.

"Though the idea of drinking insect-tinted liquor may sound unappetizing, the dye is, after all, natural." I guess that settles it. Anything natural is good. Like cyanide (extracted from apricot pits) and smallpox. By the way, no aspersions on Cochineal, which I'm sure is invigorating as well as natural.

Cochineal is extracted from a scale insect (Order Hempitera) not a beetle (Order Coleoptera)!