Cocktail Family Deep Dives
The Spritz: Italy's Gift to Happy Hour
The Spritz — bitter liqueur, prosecco, and soda over ice — transformed aperitivo culture from a regional Italian ritual into a global phenomenon. Its formula is simple; its cultural power is enormous.
The Spritz is the aperitivo in cocktail form: low in alcohol, bitter, effervescent, and designed to stimulate appetite rather than satisfy it. Its modern global form — Spritz with Aperol — is one of the most commercially successful cocktails of the 21st century. But the template is older, more varied, and more interesting than its ubiquitous orange-and-prosecco expression suggests.
Veneto Origins
The Spritz originated in the Veneto region of northeastern Italy in the 19th century, when Austrian soldiers occupying the region diluted local Italian wines with water (German: "Spritzen," meaning to spray or splash). The soldiers found Italian wines too full-bodied and alcoholic, so they literally splashed water into their glasses — creating a lighter, more sessionable drink that suited prolonged sociable drinking.
The Aperitivo Culture
The Spritz formula evolved naturally from this dilution practice into the aperitivo tradition: a light, bitter, appetite-stimulating drink consumed between working hours and dinner. The aperitivo ritual — drinks, small bites, conversation — is a scheduling device as much as a drinking occasion. The bitterness of the liqueur element stimulates salivation and gastric acid production, literally preparing the digestive system for the meal to come.
Bitter Liqueur as the Defining Ingredient
The Spritz's key ingredient is the bitter liqueur, and the choice defines the character of the entire drink. The bitter liqueur provides complexity, color, aromatics, and the defining bitterness that separates a Spritz from a simple wine spritzer.
Aperol vs Campari: The Great Debate
No debate in the Spritz world is more passionately argued than Aperol versus Campari.
Aperol: The Accessible Choice
Aperol is lower in alcohol (11% ABV versus Campari's 25%), gentler in bitterness, and sweeter, with prominent orange and rhubarb notes. The Aperol Spritz — 3 parts prosecco, 2 parts Aperol, 1 part soda over ice with an orange slice — is the drink that conquered the global aperitivo market. Its approachability is both its commercial strength and the source of bartenders' occasional condescension toward it. It is not a sophisticated drink; it is a perfectly engineered one.
Campari: The Traditional Choice
Campari's higher ABV, more intense bitterness, and greater complexity produce a Spritz that is drier, more challenging, and more interesting to serious cocktail drinkers. The Campari Spritz uses the same format as the Aperol version but rewards drinkers who enjoy the full-throated bitterness of a properly made Negroni or Americano. In the Veneto, Campari Spritz is the traditional choice; Aperol dominates younger and international markets.
Other Bitter Liqueurs
The Spritz template is not limited to Aperol and Campari. Cynar (artichoke-based), Luxardo Bitter, Strega, Fernet Branca (used sparingly), and regional Italian amaros all work within the format. Each produces a Spritz with a distinct character — the template is a vehicle for exploring Italy's remarkable bitter liqueur tradition.
The Hugo: Alpine Variation
The Hugo Spritz — elderflower liqueur (typically St-Germain), prosecco, soda, fresh mint, and lime — emerged from the Trentino-Alto Adige region in the early 2000s and spread rapidly through alpine Europe. It uses the same format as the Aperol Spritz but replaces the bitter liqueur with a floral, sweet modifier, producing a completely different flavor experience: light, fragrant, and refreshing rather than bitter and stimulating.
The Hugo is technically a Spritz by format but not by aperitivo function — its lack of bitterness means it does not stimulate appetite. It is a refreshing wine cocktail that has borrowed the Spritz's template for a different purpose.
The Sbagliato: Negroni Meets Spritz
The Americano — Campari, sweet vermouth, and soda — became the Negroni Sbagliato when a bartender at Bar Basso in Milan accidentally poured prosecco instead of gin into a Negroni during a busy service in the 1970s. "Sbagliato" means "mistaken" in Italian, and the drink's origin story was perfect marketing: a happy accident that produced something worth repeating.
The Sbagliato sits at the intersection of the Spritz and Negroni families — it uses the Negroni's ingredients but the Spritz's prosecco dilution, producing a drink lighter than either parent.
DIY Spritz Formulas
The Spritz's openness to variation makes it ideal for home experimentation. The structural formula:
- Wine base: Prosecco, Cava, or any dry sparkling wine. The sweetness and effervescence determine the drink's overall lightness.
- Bitter modifier: 1.5 to 2 oz of your chosen bitter liqueur.
- Dilution: 1 oz soda water, adjusted to taste.
- Ice: Large cubes in a wine glass or rocks glass.
- Garnish: Citrus slice, olive, or fresh herb — matching the liqueur's character.
The Spritz is the cocktail world's most successful export of the slow-drinking philosophy. Its low alcohol content, food-pairing orientation, and social architecture make it something more than a drink — it is a ritual of transition from work to pleasure.