Aperol Spritz: the orange slice is the whole drink
An Aperol Spritz is three ingredients and a piece of orange, and the orange is not optional. Strip it out and you have a glass of slightly bitter orange fizz. With it, you have the drink people order on holiday.
The ratio
Three, two, one. Three parts prosecco, two parts Aperol, one part soda. That is the official ratio and it is right.
The common mistake is going heavy on the Aperol because it is the thing that makes it orange. Too much and the drink turns syrupy and medicinal. The prosecco is what keeps it light.
Build it in this order: ice first, then prosecco, then Aperol, then soda. Pouring prosecco onto Aperol knocks the bubbles flat immediately, and a flat spritz is a sad thing. Aperol is heavier, so it sinks through the wine and mixes itself with barely a stir.
Why the orange has to be substantial
This is a big glass with a lot of ice. A thin sliver of peel disappears in it, and a small wedge looks apologetic.
You want a full wheel, sat against the inside of the glass where it is visible through the drink. Aperol's flavour is bitter orange, so the garnish is reinforcing the main note rather than adding a new one, and you get the citrus oil on the nose with every sip.
A dried orange wheel holds up better here than a fresh one, and the reason is specific to this drink: a spritz is a slow drink in a big glass full of melting ice. A fresh slice sits in cold liquid for half an hour and goes pale and limp. A dried slice keeps its colour and its shape the whole way.
There is also the practical point that you can keep dried slices in the cupboard. A spritz is a spontaneous drink, and having to have bought an orange is the main reason people do not make one.
The ice
Fill the glass. All the way, not three cubes. A spritz is meant to be served over a lot of ice, and a full glass melts more slowly than a half-empty one. This is the difference between the drink you get in Italy and the watery one you get at home.
The recipe
Ingredients (per serve)
- 90ml prosecco
- 60ml Aperol
- 30ml soda water
- A glass full of ice
- F N Lemons dried orange slice
Method
- Fill a large wine glass with ice.
- Pour in the prosecco, then the Aperol, then the soda.
- Stir once, gently.
- Tuck a dried orange wheel down the inside of the glass.
Variations worth trying
Swap Aperol for Campari and you have a considerably more bitter drink, sometimes called a Milano-Torino spritz. Still orange, still a wheel.
For something non-alcoholic, a good bitter orange soda over ice with a dried orange wheel gets you surprisingly close, and it looks identical, which is most of what people want when everyone else is drinking.
Everything we make is handcrafted in small batches here in the Waikato, using real fruit and natural ingredients. Browse the dried citrus range, with free shipping on orders over $100.