Aperol Spritz

As orange as a summer sunset, Italy’s Aperol Spritz is a boozy, bubbly beverage that’s simultaneously sweet and bitter. It’s also a drink that is easy to order at bars all over the world.

However, despite its ubiquitousness, there’s nowhere better to sip an Aperol Spritz than in Italy, the country where the iconic spritzer was invented.

We first tasted an Aperol Spritz in Naples after we saw locals sipping vibrant orange drinks in jumbo goblets… but it wasn’t what we expected. Surprised by an astringent flavor that seemed incongruent to the drink’s fruity appearance, we were unsure if we liked the colorful cocktail almost a decade ago.

To be honest, we’re still not sure whether or not we love Aperol Spritzes. But, since we’re not quitters, we’ll keep drinking them until we make up our minds. It’s the least we can do as home mixologists and dedicated food travelers.

Discover our favorite Italian cocktails.

Although Italian bartenders first crafted Aperol Spritzes in the 1950s, the drink’s history goes back to 1919 when Luigi and Silvio Barbieri invented Aperol in Padua, an Italian city located in the same region as both Venice and Verona. Popular within the boot for decades, the Aperol Spritz achieved global fame after Gruppo Campari purchased Aperol in 2003.

Gruppo Campari also owns Campari, the bitter red liquor used to craft Negronis, but the two liquors aren’t the same. Made with ingredients like citrus oil, rhubarb, gentian root and cinchona bark, Aperol is sweeter and less potent than Campari. It’s also orange as previously noted.

The Aperol Spritz fits into the spritz cocktail category.

Beloved in Italy, classic spritzes contain sparkling wine, Amari (i.e. bitter liqueur) and soda water in a 3:2:1 ratio. Prosecco is the Italian sparkling wine of choice while Aperol, Campari, Cynar and Select are popular Amari choices.

The classic Aperol Spritz recipe has three parts Prosecco, two parts Aperol and one part fizzy water. For many Italians, drinking an Aperol Spritz has become a nightly aperitivo ritual.

Italy’s aperitvo is the happiest hour of the day when people wind down before dinner with a refreshing cocktail and snacks like salumi (preferably prosciutto, coppa or mortadella), cheese and olives. Italians typically drink wine, Negronis and spritzes during the nightly sunset ritual.

It goes without saying that the Aperol Spritz is one of the most popular aperitivo spritzes. However, don’t assume that every Italian bar serves Aperol Spritzes. One of the best cicchetti bars in Venice proudly declares itself to be a non-spritz zone and solely serves wine instead.

We already shared that the classic Aperol Spritz’s primary ingredients are Prosecco, Aperol and club soda on a 3:2:1 ratio. In our recipe, we use sparkling water instead of club soda.

This is the full list of Aperol Spritz ingredients:

Due to its popularity, Aperol is available at liquor stores around the world as well as at many grocery stores. Accordingly, it should be easy to find in your neck of the woods unless you’d rather buy a bottle online.

While any sparkling wine would technically work, we like to use a good quality Italian Prosecco when we craft this Italian cocktail at home. We chose an extra dry Prosecco produced by Albino Armani in the Veneto for this recipe. As a bonus, the leftover Prosecco tasted great on its own.

You can use sparkling water, seltzer or club soda. Although we normally drink Perrier at home, we chose to use Italy’s San Pellegrino in honor of the drink’s heritage.

Discover our favorite sparkling wine cocktails.

Once the bottle is open, organize your work station and add ice cubes to a glass.

Pro Tip
Choose the glass with care as you’ll be drinking your Aperol Spritz from it. We like to use a wine glass though you may prefer a goblet or lowball glass instead.

The next step is to measure the Prosecco and Aperol. We use a Japanese Jigger for these measurements to avoid spillage and ensure accurate measurements.

Buy a Japanese jigger from Amazon if you need a jigger or want an inexpensive upgrade.

You’ll want to immediately start sipping your Aperol Spritz while its cold and bubbly. If you don’t, the ice will melt and the drink will dilute.

You’ll also want to space your sips with nibbles like cured meat, hard cheese and Mediterranean olives. By doing so, you will be enjoying aperitivo whether you’re in Rome, Italy or Rome, Georgia.

Whether or not you consider our classic Aperol Spritz recipe to be the perfect Aperol Spritz recipe, feel free to get creative by trying one or more of the following alternatives during a future aperitivo session:

Discover 10 essential bar tools for the home mixologist.

Thirsty For More Italian Cocktails?