The Original Paduan Aperol Spritz

The Original Paduan Aperol Spritz

The early 1920s Venetian and Paduan bar version, before the prosecco substitution of the 1950s Primary sources: Web Food Culture, Spritz History Documentation; Italy Segreta, History of the Aperol Spritz; Roberto Pasini, A Guide to Spritz, 2013; Aperol Company historical documentation Note on the historical record: Aperol was invented in 1919 and the combination of Aperol with the Venetian spritz tradition in still white wine is documented as the early 1920s to 1930s preparation. The prosecco version was formalised in the 1950s. This recipe represents the earlier still wine version.

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Prep Time 5

Ingredients

60 ml Aperol approximately 2 oz
90 ml Soave or Pinot Grigio delle Venezie approximately 3 oz — still, dry, local Venetian white wine. Not prosecco. Not sparkling. A dry, crisp, unoaked white wine with enough acidity to cut through the sweetness of the Aperol. Soave is the most historically grounded choice for this recipe. Pinot Grigio delle Venezie is widely available and an excellent substitute
Soda water to top — a short splash not a flood. The spritz is just that, a spritz. The soda is the accent, not the base
Ice
One orange slice

Instructions

Fill a wide, short tumbler or wine glass with ice. Pour the Aperol over the ice first. Add the still white wine. Finish with a short splash of soda water. The soda should add a gentle effervescence rather than overwhelming carbonation. Garnish with a slice of orange. No olive, no branded paper straw, no prosecco.

Notes

Soave is available at most wine shops and many supermarkets. Look for a young, unoaked Soave Classico from the Verona hills. Avoid any Soave described as aged or barrel-fermented, which produces a richer, heavier style not suited to this preparation.

The ratio of Aperol to wine is intentionally wine-forward in this version. The wine should be the dominant component with the Aperol adding bitterness and colour rather than sweetness and flavour. Adjust the ratio to taste but resist the temptation to add more Aperol than the recipe specifies. The original Venetian version was light and aperitif-appropriate, not a heavily Aperol-forward drink.

Serve this before dinner, not instead of dinner. The still wine version is a genuine aperitif that will make whatever you eat afterward taste better. That is what it was designed to do and it does it very well.