Aperol Spritz
The Veneto's orange aperitivo, poured three, two, one
Late afternoon in a northern Italian square, the light going amber and the first glasses coming out. The Aperol Spritz is that hour made drinkable: cold prosecco, a measure of bitter orange aperitivo born in Padua a century ago, a splash of soda to lift it, ice, and a slice of orange. It descends from the habit of lengthening Veneto wine with water, and it asks very little of the person making it, which is part of its grace. Low in strength, high in color, built for conversation.
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.
Ingredients
- 3 oz / 90 ml Prosecco, extra dry or brut, well chilled
- 2 oz / 60 ml Aperol
- 1 oz / 30 ml Soda water, chilled
- Technique
- Built
- Glass
- Wine
- Ice
- Cubed
- Prep
- 2 min · Easy
- Garnish
- A half wheel of orange tucked into the ice; a green olive on a pick is the Venetian habit.
- Approximate strength
- about 8% ABV in the glass (Estimate. Ethanol from 90 ml prosecco at 11% is about 10 ml and from 60 ml Aperol at 11% about 6.6 ml; with 30 ml soda the pre-dilution volume is 180 ml at about 9.2% ABV; assumed 10% dilution from building on ice gives roughly 8% ABV.)
- Allergens
- Sulfites
Method
Fill a large wine glass with cubed ice to the top. Let it sit for 10 seconds, then tip out any meltwater.10s
A glass full of ice is a glass full of afternoon, waiting to be colored in.
Pour the chilled prosecco over the ice first, then the Aperol, so the heavier bitter sinks through the wine and mixes without stirring hard.
Prosecco first, then the orange falling through it like light through a shutter.
Add the soda water and give one slow turn with a barspoon to combine. Do not stir vigorously or the sparkle is lost.5s
A splash, one turn of the spoon, and the drink is awake.
Garnish with a half wheel of orange tucked into the ice, and serve immediately while the glass is still frosting.
An orange slice at the rim, the sun setting into the glass.
Flavor notes
Bitter orange peel and a faint rhubarb and gentian edge on the nose. Light, cold and sparkling on the palate, gently sweet from the Aperol and the prosecco's residual sugar, finishing bitter and clean. At 3-2-1 the drink is balanced toward refreshment; equal parts makes it sweeter and more orange.
Variations
- Select Spritz: 3 oz prosecco, 2 oz Select, 1 oz soda, green olive.
- Campari Spritz: 3 oz prosecco, 1.5 oz Campari, 1 oz soda, orange slice.
- Cynar Spritz: 3 oz prosecco, 1.5 oz Cynar, 1 oz soda, orange or lemon.
- Spritz Bianco: 3 oz prosecco, 1 oz elderflower liqueur, 1 oz soda, lemon twist and mint.
Substitutions
- Aperol: Select aperitivo · Makes the Venetian Select Spritz, a little drier and more herbal, usually garnished with a green olive.
- Aperol: Campari · A Campari Spritz, more bitter and stronger; many drinkers drop to 1.5 oz (45 ml) of Campari.
- Aperol: Cynar · The artichoke-based amaro gives a darker, earthier spritz popular around Padua and Venice.
- Prosecco: Dry Soave or another still dry white wine · Closer to the older Veneto spritz; the drink is less sparkling and leans on the soda for lift.
- Soda water: Omit and raise prosecco to 4 oz (120 ml) · The way some bars pour it; a touch stronger and sweeter.
Without alcohol
Build 3 oz (90 ml) chilled non-alcoholic sparkling wine or dry sparkling white grape juice, 2 oz (60 ml) of a zero-proof bitter orange aperitivo (several brands now make one) and 1 oz (30 ml) soda over ice with an orange slice. For a kitchen version, use 1.5 oz (45 ml) fresh orange juice, 0.5 oz (15 ml) grapefruit juice and 2 dashes of non-alcoholic orange bitters in place of the aperitivo.
Batching
For 8 drinks keep the three parts separate and cold: a bottle of prosecco (750 ml) covers 8 drinks at 3 oz (90 ml) each, 16 oz (480 ml) Aperol, and 8 oz (240 ml) soda. Pre-chill the Aperol and prosecco for at least four hours and fill glasses with ice before guests sit down, then build each glass to order; a pre-mixed pitcher goes flat within 20 minutes. If you must serve from a pitcher, combine the Aperol and prosecco over a large block of ice and add soda only in the glass.
Origin and sources
Aperol was created in 1919 by the brothers Luigi and Silvio Barbieri in their father's liqueur company after seven years of experimentation; one account places the launch at the Padua International Fair that year. It is a bitter orange aperitivo of about 11 percent alcohol, and the brand's own history says it became popular in Padua cafes and Venetian bars in the 1920s. The spritz is older and belongs to the Veneto: the custom of lengthening the region's wine with water, named with the German verb spritzen, is tied by tradition to the Austrian soldiers stationed in the Veneto under Habsburg rule in the early nineteenth century. In the early twentieth century soda water replaced still water and the drink gained its sparkle, and as aperitivo culture spread the local bitters went in: Select or Cynar in Venice, Aperol or Campari in Treviso and Udine. Aperol's heritage page dates the recipe for the Aperol Spritz as a named cocktail to the 1950s, and prosecco replaced still white wine as the base in that period. The brand dates its first international recognition to the 1980s and 1990s, but the spritz went global after Gruppo Campari bought the brand in 2003 and promoted the 3-2-1 spritz (three parts prosecco, two Aperol, one soda, over ice in a large wine glass with an orange slice) through the 2000s and 2010s, which made it one of the most ordered aperitivi in the world. Because the drink depends on the brand, this record names Aperol rather than a generic aperitivo.
Contested: The Austrian-soldier story is told as legend by the sources we read, not documented, and one notes that watering wine in the Veneto predates the Habsburg period. The sources are vague on when a bitter first went into the spritz: the brand describes Aperol in Padua cafes and Venetian bars in the 1920s, while the named Aperol Spritz is dated to the 1950s; they also differ on whether the name Aperol Spritz is a 1950s creation or a later marketing label applied to a drink already common in Padua and Venice. The 3-2-1 ratio is the most widely published modern formula; Difford's Guide records that the brand itself has at times recommended equal parts prosecco and Aperol with a splash of soda, and many Venetian bars pour heavier on the bitter and lighter on the soda. This record uses the 3-2-1 build as the headline because it is the most widely published spec and reads balanced rather than sweet.
- Our Story (Aperol heritage timeline), Aperol, Gruppo Campari · primary source, retrieved 2026-10-11
- Aperol Spritz / Aperitivo Spritz (Difford's recipe), Difford's Guide · secondary source, retrieved 2026-10-11
- The Story of the Aperol Spritz, Essential Italy · tertiary source, retrieved 2026-10-11
- The humble origins of the spritz, Il Globo · tertiary source, retrieved 2026-10-11
Fact check: verified · Credit: The Fabled Pour editorial team