Aperol

Also called Aperol aperitivo, Aperol bitter

A bright orange Italian aperitivo liqueur at 11% ABV, built on bitter orange, rhubarb, gentian and cinchona with a light, sweet bitterness. Created in Padua in 1919, it became a global habit through the Aperol Spritz with prosecco and soda. Low in alcohol and easy, it also lifts citrus forward sours.

bitter orange
rhubarb
gentian
sweet orange
vanilla
light herbal bitterness

Origin

Luigi and Silvio Barbieri created Aperol in 1919 inside their father's liqueur company in Padua after seven years of experimentation. It grew through the cafés of Padua and the bars of Venice, the Spritz recipe that carried it spread in the 1950s with Italian television advertising, and the brand gained international recognition in the 1980s. Gruppo Campari bought Barbero, and Aperol with it, in 2003 and built the Spritz into a worldwide summer ritual; the brand marked its centenary in 2019.

Common uses

aperol-spritz (3 parts prosecco, 2 Aperol, 1 soda)
Aperol Sour with lemon and egg white
a Naked and Famous with mezcal
Aperol and soda
a lighter Negroni (Aperol in place of Campari)

Pours that use it

International
Aperol Spritz
The Veneto's orange aperitivo, poured three, two, one
Italy's aperitivo-hour spritz: prosecco, Aperol and soda water built over ice in a wine glass with an orange slice, in the 3-2-1 proportion.
LiqueurBuiltEasy

Sources

Aperol: our story, Aperol (Campari Group) · primary source, retrieved 2026-10-11
Aperol Aperitivo, Difford's Guide · secondary source, retrieved 2026-10-11