At its core, a spritz is a wine-based beverage cut with some type of bubbles, which can range from non-alcoholic soda water to sparkling wine. Some may argue the ubiquitous Aperol Spritz stole the spotlight from the original (unfairly maligned) wine spritzer (they were very popular in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s), while others may petition that it raised the metaphorical tides for spritz culture to spread across America (and around the globe!). While there’s never a bad time to indulge in a fizzy spritz, the drink is particularly fitting for the long, lazy, hazy days of summer.
Case in point, there’s now even a petitioned holiday for the beloved bubbly beverage. August 1 is National Spritz Day; an opportunity to indulge and appreciate the spritz in all its forms. After all, the spritz is a low-ABV, refreshing beverage that is as ideal on a warm summer day as it is as a pre-dinner drink during the festive season in the winter. The reason why? Besides playing into key trends of modern drinking culture, like the no- and low-alcohol movement and nostalgia, the botanical base most associated with a spritz—like Aperol’s use of gentian, cinchona and rhubarb roots—supports digestion. This can be traced back to the origins of bitter tonics created with wormwood that were once used medicinally, before it evolved to the casual category of cocktails as we know it today. That’s why a spritz is classified as an aperitif: a beverage that helps stimulate the appetite, typically sipped before a meal.
Sipping an aperitif may be most popular in Europe, and particularly so in Italy, where there isn’t a free seat in the piazzas from Torino to Palermo in the hours after work and before dinner, but it’s caught on stateside, with newcomers on the market offering variations on the classic bitter spritz. From floral to fruity, boozy to bitter, raise a glass with the best spritz cocktail recipes.
The original Italian spritz relies on botanical-infused wines or spirits, using the likes of vermouth (wine-based) and amaro (spirit-based), that also incorporate some type of orange citrus. As the spritz expanded beyond its native country’s borders, some wineries have witnessed an opportunity to create their own version of a spritz that may stray from the traditional roots, but are still born-and-bred Italian. You can’t go wrong with a classic Aperol spritz recipe, but there are also plenty of unique takes on the drink.
For a twist on the profile of classic Italian orange bitters, this spritz is brightened by the ginger and honeysuckle in its Amante 1530 base. The new-to-market amaro is from Tuscany, using Italian citrus to create a familiar sip, while the inclusion of more contemporary botanicals results in Amante’s medium-body (rather than a heavier amaro) that creates a more refreshing sip.
Ingredients:
2 oz Amante 1530
3 oz prosecco
1 oz soda water
Garnish: Lemon wedge
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a wine glass and gently stir. Squeeze the lemon wedge, then drop it into the cocktail.
Martini & Rossi is a quintessential Italian brand, with headquarters just outside of Turin, which was briefly Italy’s capital city during the 1860s. The brand is most revered for their vermouth, aromatic blends of fruit, bark, spices and herbs from Italy’s Pancalieri region, but in 2021, they debuted Fiero, a bittersweet, low-alcohol content vermouth as their first innovation in 30 years. The wine-based Italian aperitivo was designed to be served as a 50/50 serve with tonic water, but it’s also drawn attention from the spritz crowd thanks to its lively orange essence.
Ingredients:
2 oz Martini & Rossi Fiero
3 oz prosecco
1 oz soda water
Garnish: Orange slice
Directions:
Fill a balloon glass with ice. Pour in Martini & Rossi Fiero, prosecco and soda water. Stir gently and garnish with an orange slice.
Lambrusco is an Italian sparkling red wine that’s often sipped by itself as an “aperitivo” thanks to its semi-sweet flavor profile. It also frequently appears on menus as a dessert wine. While it’s not a fortified wine or a liqueur, the natural sweetness combined with a tart cherry and raspberry shines epically in a spritz build.
Ingredients:
1 oz Riunite Lambrusco
1 oz prosecco
Splash of lemonade or a squeeze of lemon
Garnish: lemon wheel
Directions:
Combine equal parts semi-sparkling wine and prosecco over ice in a balloon glass. Squeeze in lemon or a splash of lemonade; garnish with a lemon wheel.
As aperitivo sweeps across the globe, innovators stateside are creating their own versions of wine-based beverages that provide an all-American riff on the classics. Many of them use Italian-inspired flavors while making them approachable and educational for the stateside market; these are often lighter, lower-ABV options than the heritage Italian versions.
As beloved as the spritz has become in the U.S., the appreciation of aperitivo hour and culture is not as widespread as it is in Europe; often compared to happy hour, that’s a gross comparison. That’s why wife-husband duo, Cindy and Kyle Pressman, created Atōst as an answer to aperitivo, to educate on the nature of slowing down and transitioning from day to night that aperitif is recognized for across the pond.
Ingredients:
2 oz Atōst aperitif
3 oz sparkling rosé
1 oz soda water
Garnish: fresh orange slice
Directions:
Fill a wine glass with ice and add atōst, rosé and top with soda. Garnish with a fresh orange slice.
In coastal Italy, the Limoncello spritz is served as a more refreshing alternative to the Aperol spritz, as the latter can be quite cloying. Le Moné aperitif mimics the candied citrus of limoncello, with its Meyer lemon infusion, but is made stateside by a family-owned winery in the Finger Lakes. It’s bright, light and zesty, reminding us that a spritz doesn’t require a shade of orange to do its job.
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Le Moné
1.5 oz prosecco
Garnish: green grapes and lemon wheel
Directions:
Pour equal parts Le Moné with equal parts prosecco into a large wine glass filled with ice. Garnish with green grapes and a lemon wheel.
In northern Italy (places like Trentino and Alto Adige), the Hugo spritz is prolific on menus. Made with St-Germain elderflower liqueur, prosecco and a mint garnish, the spritz is quite floral; for some, it may be overly so. This recipe incorporates gin of which its botanicals emphasize the herbaceous qualities of the elderflower liqueur that may not be as obvious on its own. The lemon garnish adds a touch of zest to mingle all the flavors together.
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Gray Whale Gin
2 oz prosecco
.5 oz Carpano Bianco
.5 oz elderflower liqueur
Club soda
Garnish: lemon twist
Directions:
Add all ingredients to a wine glass and top with ice. Float in club soda to just below the rim and garnish with a lemon twist.
France gives spritz aficionados the best of both worlds; both dry and effortless spritz riffs, as well as fruit-forward, sweeter renditions. The latter use a base of fruity liqueur rather than wine-based aperitif, which can certainly feel more indulgent than refreshing, but given every palate craves something different, there’s certainly room for them at the table.
Lillet has been France’s answer to aperitivo since 1872. Similar to Martini & Rossi’s innovation with Fiero, Lillet Rosé was the brand’s first new product in more than 50 years when it launched in 2012. Today, it’s found popularity as a seamless spritz—you’ll find it everywhere in French bars and cafes around 4 p.m. Since it swaps prosecco for club soda, it mimics the original wine spritzer, with a low ABV that makes it actually refreshing.
Ingredients:
2.5 oz Lillet Rosé
2.5 oz club soda
Garnish: grapefruit wheel
Directions:
Pour Lillet Rosé into a wine glass full of ice cubes. Top it with club soda, then garnish with a grapefruit wheel.
Technically Argentine, Chandon was established by Frenchman Robert-Jean de Vogüé, who was looking to redefine the category of sparkling wine across the globe, beyond Champagne. Today, there are six Chandon wineries, and the winemaking team in the inaugural locale of Mendoza crafted this delectable, ready-to-serve recipe. The sparkling wine is infused with orange peels, herbs and spices—all you need to do is pop the cork and pour; an effortless take on the spritz.
Ingredients:
Chandon Garden Spritz
Garnish: dried orange, rosemary and optional cinnamon stick
Directions:
Pour into a wine glass filled with ice; garnish with a slice of dried orange, a sprig of rosemary and a cinnamon stick.
Eighteen pears are needed to create a bottle of Belle de Brillet, a unique pear and Cognac-based liqueur. There’s also a touch of Madagascan vanilla, so the liqueur by itself can lean quite sweet. When combined with grapefruit soda and lemon juice, the citrus cuts through the weight of the liqueur while the prosecco adds lift. Since it’s not botanical- or bitter-forward, it’s not your typical spritz, but that’s what makes it so special.
Ingredients:
1.75 oz Belle de Brillet
.5 oz lemon juice
3.5 oz grapefruit soda
1 oz prosecco
Garnish: grapefruit slice
Directions:
Combine all ingredients into a wine glass full of ice and stir gently. Garnish with a slice of grapefruit.
Chambord blackberry liqueur may be most famous for its role in a French Martini, but in recent years, it’s been given new life, as its brambly flavor was recognized as an agreeable substitute in a spritz. It is quite syrupy sweet on its own, so combining it with a dry white wine like sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio is an ideal way to balance that profile.
Ingredients:
1 oz Chambord Blackberry Liqueur
3 oz white wine
2 oz soda water
Garnish: sprig of mint and blackberry
Directions:
Add Chambord and wine into a wine glass filled with ice. Top with soda water and garnish with mint sprig and blackberry.
As much as I love a classic spritz, my palate leans toward herbaceous, so I’ve been playing around with flavors this summer. This garden-fresh spritz incorporates one of my favorite herbs, basil, and likens more of a wine spritzer.
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Lillet blanc
1.5 oz club soda
.5 oz ounce simple syrup
10 basil leaves
Dash of orange bitters
Garnish: sprig of basil
Directions:
Wash basil leaves, then add them to a shaker with simple syrup and muddle to release essences. Add ice, then the Lillet blanc and then shake to combine. Strain into a wine glass filled with ice, top with the club soda and a dash of orange bitters. Add a basil leaf for garnish and sip through a straw to enjoy the most concentrated flavor.
At Sonsie in Boston, beverage director Dawn Salvi created this watermelon-liqueur based spritz as a refreshing solution to any hot day. The freshness of the watermelon and cucumber and fizz from the prosecco result in a deliciously dangerous thirst-quencher.
Ingredients:
2 oz watermelon liqueur
2 oz prosecco
1 oz fresh watermelon juice
1 oz soda water
2 dashes of cucumber bitters
Garnish: cucumber ribbon
Directions:
Add ice to a wine glass followed by the watermelon juice and watermelon liqueur. Stir gently, then top with the prosecco and soda water. Finish with two dashes of cucumber bitters and a cucumber ribbon for garnish.
Liberty Adams created this recipe for Yampa Valley Kitchen in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Inspired by Japanese flavors, the melon liqueur and aloe mesh with the citrus and cardamom for a layered palate of sweet, spice and everything nice.
Ingredients:
.75 oz Midori Melon liqueur (or another melon liquor)
.75 Chareau Aloe Liqueur
.75 oz lemon vodka
.75 oz lemon juice
3 oz prosecco
1 dash cardamom extract (combine 1 tablespoon of cardamom seeds and 3 oz of vodka; let it sit for 24 hours before it’s ready for use)
Garnish: lemon wheel and a cucumber ribbon
Directions:
Pour 2 oz of prosecco into a wine glass. Place cucumber in a shaker with ice with the rest of the ingredients, except the remaining 1 oz of prosecco and lemon garnish. Shake vigorously. Pour into the wine glass. Top with prosecco. Garnish with lemon and a cucumber ribbon.
Flavors of the east meet flavors of the west in this sake-based spritz. The bright sake is lower in ABV than the bianco (of which there is still a splash included to ensure it stays in the spritz category) and the kumquat combined with pineapple add an exotic, tropical twist.
Ingredients:
3 oz Sake ONO
4 kumquats
.5 oz bitter bianco
.25 oz pineapple liqueur
1.5 oz club soda
Garnish: a sliced kumquats and optional pineapple frond
Directions:
Halve the kumquats and muddle in a shaker. Add in sake, bitter bianco and pineapple. Fill the shaker with ice and shake vigorously for about 15 seconds. Double strain into a white wine glass filled with ice and top with club soda. Garnish with the sliced kumquats and pineapple frond.
