Even today, tradition dictates that the green walnuts for this liqueur are harvested only during the night of June 24th, the day on which the summer solstice was once celebrated and which today religiously commemorates the figure of Saint John the Baptist.
The "guazza" of that night is considered by tradition to be a panacea for all ills; the stomatal qualities of nocino were already known as far back as the 16th century as they are documented in the "Treasure of Health" by the famous doctor Casto Durante de Gualdo.
The heritage is certainly pagan, but the liqueur has become part of the gastronomic tradition of those areas dedicated to the production of walnuts; in fact, even in Naples the old families linked to tradition offer this liqueur made from walnuts at the end of lunch, which is called nucillo due to the evident dialect inflections.
