Low · sparkling
Aperol spritz
Bitter orange, prosecco and soda over ice. The welcome drink of the last ten summers, and still the one people cheer for.
- Pour
- 180 ml
- Strength
- Low
- Best for
- Big parties, Garden parties, Weddings
- Season
- Summer, Spring
- Fizz
- Added at the door
- Ahead
- Jug ahead, top at the door
The welcome pour
One glass, 180 ml
Large wine glass, plenty of ice. Garnish: a slice of orange.
The spec, according to the IBA: 90 ml prosecco, 60 ml Aperol and a splash of soda, built over ice in a wine glass with an orange slice. Aperol's own page writes it as 3-2-1: three parts prosecco, two parts Aperol, one part soda.
| Ingredient | Per glass | When |
|---|---|---|
| Prosecco | 90 ml (3 fl oz) | at the door |
| Aperol | 60 ml (2 fl oz) | in the jug |
| Soda water | 30 ml (1 fl oz) | at the door |
The jug
How much for your party
One welcome drink per guest plus a 15% spare. Sparkling wine and soda are counted here but stay in the fridge until the door.
| Ingredient | Amount | When |
|---|---|---|
| Prosecco 2 × 750 ml bottles | 1.3 L 5.5 cups | at the door |
| Aperol 2 × 700 ml bottles (750 ml in the US) | 850 ml 28.5 fl oz | in the jug |
| Soda water 1 × 1 L bottle | 420 ml 14 fl oz | at the door |
| The jug holds 850 ml (28.5 fl oz), which is 1 1.5-litre jug filled to 85%. Added per glass at the door: 1.7 L in all. | ||
Make it
In the jug, then at the door
Ahead. Only the Aperol goes in the jug, measured at 60 ml a head. Chill the prosecco and the soda in the fridge or in an ice bucket for at least three hours.
At the door. Ice in the glass, 60 ml Aperol from the jug, 90 ml prosecco, a short splash of soda, an orange slice. Pour the prosecco slowly down the side so it keeps its fizz.
Keeps. Aperol keeps for months once opened. An opened bottle of prosecco with a stopper keeps its fizz for a day or two in the fridge, so open bottles as you need them rather than all at once.
- Chill everything: prosecco, soda and the Aperol itself. A spritz built with warm Aperol needs more ice and drinks flatter.
- Measure the Aperol into a jug, 60 ml for every glass you plan to pour, and keep it cold.
- Slice the oranges in the last hour and cover them.
- At the door: ice, Aperol, prosecco, soda, orange. Twenty seconds a glass once you have the rhythm.
The alcohol-free twin
Crodino spritz
Campari's own academy makes the alcohol-free spritz with Crodino, its bitter orange aperitivo, poured over ice with an orange slice. We add a short splash of soda so it matches the Aperol glass for length.
Ice in a wine glass, the aperitivo, a splash of soda, an orange slice. Nothing to batch: it is a bottle poured cold.
Reference: campariacademy.com
| Ingredient | Per glass | When |
|---|---|---|
| Crodino or another alcohol-free bitter aperitivo | 100 ml (3.5 fl oz) | at the door |
| Soda water | 50 ml (1.5 fl oz) | at the door |
Why it works at the door
Aperol spritz, in three paragraphs
The spritz works at the door because it does three jobs at once: it looks like a celebration, it is low in alcohol, and it is built in the glass, so nobody is shaking anything while guests take their coats off. Bitter orange wakes the appetite, which is the point of an aperitivo, and the soda keeps it long enough to hold for twenty minutes of hellos.
It scales without changing character. A spritz for four and a spritz for forty are the same drink; the only thing that grows is the number of prosecco bottles in the ice bucket. That is rarer than it sounds. Most cocktails get worse as the batch gets bigger.
Two decisions matter. Buy a dry prosecco (brut or extra dry), because Aperol brings the sweetness. And use big ice, lots of it: a spritz over three small cubes is warm and flat within five minutes.
Questions hosts ask
Can I batch a spritz in a jug?
Batch the Aperol, not the fizz. Measure 60 ml of Aperol per glass into a jug and keep it cold; add the prosecco and soda to each glass at the door, because a jug of spritz goes flat within minutes.
How much prosecco do I need per guest?
One spritz uses 90 ml of prosecco, so a 750 ml bottle pours eight spritzes. For a welcome round with a 15% spare, plan one bottle for every seven guests.
Is an Aperol spritz strong?
It is one of the lightest welcome drinks. Aperol itself is 11% ABV, and Aperol's own FAQ puts the finished spritz at about 9% once the prosecco, soda and ice are in. That is why it suits a long reception where people will drink wine later.
Next to it on the tray