{"id":3893,"date":"2026-06-18T15:03:56","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T15:03:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/?p=3893"},"modified":"2026-06-18T15:09:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T15:09:10","slug":"lo-spritz-venetian-aperitif-back-to-its-origins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/lo-spritz-venetian-aperitif-back-to-its-origins\/","title":{"rendered":"Lo Spritz, Venetian Aperitif, Back to its Origins"},"content":{"rendered":"

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I was sitting in the garden under the comfortable shade of pergola cuddled by a gentle afternoon breeze wafting through the gates from the Giudecca Canal. The water of the much smaller canal that runs along the side of our house was rhythmically lapping against the walls and I was blissfully absorbed and fascinated by my latest find in the attic: \u201dAppetite for Life. The Biography of Julia Child\u201d by Noel Riley Fitch. I had wanted to buy it and read it whilst still in London but the volume was somehow difficult to get, or it was just me who found it difficult – very strangely given Julia\u2019s fame and the British infatuation with France and French cuisine. Instead, I had purchased \u201dMy Life in France\u201d, by Julia Child with Alex Prud\u2019Homme, which I haven\u2019t read yet\u2026Well, as one by now could expect from our attic filled to the brim with cook books (many with the authors\u2019 dedication), \u201dMy Life for France\u201d was also there. A hard cover book, a larger print with yellow pages marked by the passage of time. I will be reading the \u201dattic\u201d copy which already feels laden with so many wonderful stories and adventures of Julia\u2019s memorable years in France.<\/p>\n

A few hours went by and I felt that I needed a little something. The D\u00e9gustateur had just finished his last work calls and joined me in the garden. The sun was gently giving its way to the golden warmth of the approaching evening, and that is the perfect time for a summer aperitivo, that special little something what we both felt like having.<\/p>\n

We love wine, mainly red. It\u2019s what we will always have to accompany our meals, both at home and in restaurants. Fairly often I\u2019ll have a glass of champagne or Franciacorta<\/em> (always well chilled for me) to start with; only one glass but it has to be something good and enjoyable – for it\u2019s the prelude to a meal.<\/p>\n

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Since we came back to live in Venice, almost seven months ago already, I introduced the reluctant D\u00e9gustatur to a couple simple but fabulous cocktails: Americano<\/em> and Negroni<\/em>, and now he can\u2019t \u201dlive without them\u201d. I bought a tray for large ice cubes which tend to melt very slowly keeping the drink cold rather than diluted with water, and in my opinion, one large ice cube in an old fashioned glass looks so elegant, making me feel if I were in a proper hotel bar. Did I mention we have a \u201dNegroni Club\u201d in our house?<\/p>\n

The aperitif culture is more lively and convivial in Venice. In fact, you can spot the locals having their spritz shortly after the breakfast hour, but then, for many the day starts very early here.<\/p>\n

Lo Spritz<\/em> represents the soul of the Venetian aperitif culture. It\u2019s a ritual which unites the tradition and conviviality in just one glass.<\/p>\n

Behind the simplicity of the spritz cocktail hides the perfect equilibrium of flavours whilst paying attention to the authentic ingredients. To make a worthy of its lagoon tradition spritz means knowing the right proportions of the appropriate components as well as respecting the formula which has been passed on for generations. There are so many incarnations of this drink mixed with various bitters: the classic Venetian – Select<\/em>, the most popular (not only in Italy) Aperol<\/em>, the one with a very defined bitter note Campari<\/em> or artichoke based Cynar<\/em>. You can also come across the mix between Aperol<\/em> and Campari<\/em>, which is simply called mezzo mezzo<\/em> – half half. Mezzo Mezzo <\/em>is what I had enjoyed sipping during the times when we came to live in Venice for the first time, 2020-2021.<\/p>\n

Like most of us I was first introduced to the spritz cocktail with vibrant Aperol<\/em>, garnished with a slice of an orange and a green olive. Since then I quickly shifted to the Campari<\/em> mix – mezzo mezzo<\/em>, keeping the orange and green olive untouched.<\/p>\n

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After we left Venice I didn\u2019t have any spritz. In London I\u2019d have a small glass of Campari on ice. Now, I don’t find Aperol<\/em> interesting at all, it\u2019s way too sweet for me and is lacking in complexity. But that\u2019s me, and the truth is that palates change over time, and Aperol<\/em> is still a pleasant introduction to the spritz drinking culture, gradually moving towards something more bitter.<\/p>\n

The story of the spritz drink has it that it was first introduced by the Austrians during their occupation of the city in the nineteenth century. The soldiers being used to lesser strength alcoholic drinks than the local wines started diluting them. To the white wines from Veneto sparkling water was added, in order to make them lighter – less alcoholic. The practice of doing so took its name from the German verb: spritzen<\/em>, which literally means spruzzare<\/em> – to spray.
\nThis initial innocent process of making the local wines more pleasing to the Austrians, over the years transformed itself into a real and proper social ritual: l\u2019aperitivo veneziano<\/em>.
\nThe spritz that we know today is enriched by the introduction of a bitter, which elevates and balances out the flavours. A perfect harmony between the sweet, bitter and sparkling (wine and water). Venice gave an enormous hug to this drink making it her own.<\/p>\n

There are only three ingredients involved: whine wine which is the base of the cocktail, in Venice however, we tend to reach for Prosecco, of which aromatic fresh aromas match other components of the drink so well. Needless to add that the wine or Prosecco should be well chilled and of a good quality, which doesn’t necessarily mean very expensive. Next we have sparkling water, preferably soda water, and the bitter. When we talk about the Venetian Spritz, we add Select<\/em> – a Venetian bitter born in 1920, representing the soul of the lagoon. Its intense ruby red colour and distinctive flavour are the result of a recipe based on a good thirty botanical ingredients.<\/p>\n

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To turn this Venetian cocktail into a very good cocktail prepared at home make sure that the Prosecco is very cold, have lots of ice to hand, a few good olives (in brine) and a slice of citrus.<\/p>\n

Find a good bottle of Prosecco that you really enjoy. There is nothing worse than a poor quality sparkling wine. In Venice I tend to pick up a bottle of Col Credas, Valdobbiadone DOCG<\/em> from my local enoteca – Cantine del Vino gi\u00e0 Schiavi<\/em> (Dorsoduro), and that particular choice of spumante<\/em> was a recommendation by one of the owners.<\/p>\n

Oh, did I mention the glass? Traditionally it was the old fashioned glass used, not a goblet as we see almost everywhere nowadays. I\u2019ve always preferred old fashioned glass otherwise known as the rocks glass over a goblet. <\/p>\n

Start with filling up your glass with ice cubes, until almost the very top.
\nThe proportions:<\/p>\n

Pour in: 3 parts of Prosecco, 2 parts of Select<\/em> bitter, 1 part of soda water – a splash really.
\nGive it just one gentle stir, decorate with a slice of an orange or lemon (if oranges are not in season) and a very good large olive.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve made one practical change however, I use one large ice cube or two if they fit the glass. The smaller ice cubes melt too fast in current temperatures, unpleasantly diluting the drink.\n\n

The olive, I like it, the D\u00e9gustateur less so, hence I decided to include a small bowl of olives to nibble on.
\nSoda water is not easily found in the supermarkets here, I\u2019ve tried and tested some highly sparkling waters available but since in Venice we add bubbly Prosecco, I don’t feel the need for any extra splash of water. I only have the spritz in the evenings, when I don’t mind a marginally higher content of %.
\nSo we are all set for our Venetian aperitivo at home.<\/p>\n

Salute !<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"\"\n<\/p>\n

P.S. Experiment with Aperol, Cynar <\/em>and Campari<\/em> bitters as well, but do try at least once the Venetian Select<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Since I like to keep it simple, classic and traditional I wouldn’t be able to comment on a fairly recent birth of the limoncello spritz. Never tried it and I may never will.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[13,3],"tags":[85,709,710,711,712,713,714,715,716],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3893"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3893"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3893\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3910,"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3893\/revisions\/3910"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.haimangiato.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}