On a past trip to Italy I found an aperativo called a Bicicletta in Desenzano del Garda that I liked. Well, maybe I wasn't totally enamored, while I found it refreshing I thought it was a little too bitter for my taste. So when I got home I altered the recipe a bit by using 1 part Sprite instead of a splash of club soda.
The Bicicletta (Italian for bicycle) is said to get its name from the old Italian men who favor it, and who, after indulging in a few, wobble home on their bicycles. The original recipe is:
Bicicletta
2 parts light white wine, like Pinot Grigio
1 part Campari
1 splash club soda
ice, half a slice of orange
One late afternoon in Florence we stopped by an outdoor bar to sit, have a little drink (or two), and watch the people go by. I tried to order a Bicicletta, or Bici, but like many things in Italy they are often named different things in different regions, even if that region is fairly close (I imagine the proximity of Florence to Desenzano is like that of Pensacola to Biloxi) the guy had no idea what I was talking about. When I pointed out a fellow patron with a drink that looked like what I wanted he said it was a Spritz. I could have a Campari Spritz or an Aperol Spritz. Since I had ordered a sweet prosecco prior to asking for this he brought me the Aperol Spritz. This is my new favorite drink!!! The recipe for the Aperol Spritz is:
Aperol Spritz
3 parts Prosecco
2 parts Aperol
1 splash of soda or seltz
ice, half a slice of orange
Bicicletta
2 parts light white wine, like Pinot Grigio
1 part Campari
1 splash club soda
ice, half a slice of orange
One late afternoon in Florence we stopped by an outdoor bar to sit, have a little drink (or two), and watch the people go by. I tried to order a Bicicletta, or Bici, but like many things in Italy they are often named different things in different regions, even if that region is fairly close (I imagine the proximity of Florence to Desenzano is like that of Pensacola to Biloxi) the guy had no idea what I was talking about. When I pointed out a fellow patron with a drink that looked like what I wanted he said it was a Spritz. I could have a Campari Spritz or an Aperol Spritz. Since I had ordered a sweet prosecco prior to asking for this he brought me the Aperol Spritz. This is my new favorite drink!!! The recipe for the Aperol Spritz is:
Aperol Spritz
3 parts Prosecco
2 parts Aperol
1 splash of soda or seltz
ice, half a slice of orange
Aperol is an orange flavored spirit infused with bitter and sweet oranges, herbs, and roots with a relatively low alcohol content, 11.5%. Although Aperol was created in Italy in 1919 it has only come to the U.S. about four years ago. On the other hand, Campari, which was created 1860 also in Italy (and in the states since around the mid-1930’s), is a bitter infusion of herbs, spices, barks, fruit and fruit peels with a alcohol content of 24.0%.
It is a wonderful cocktail on a hot summer's day, not too sweet, not to bitter, just a bright orange glass on an Italian afternoon.
It is a wonderful cocktail on a hot summer's day, not too sweet, not to bitter, just a bright orange glass on an Italian afternoon.