Simple, but not easy. The spritz is the answer to heavy days and what one orders after work for aperitifs. A spritz and the day can be said to be over to welcome the lightness of evening and leisure time.
It was the early twentieth century when the spritz took shape in Venice, a name that refers to the German term spritzen, to spray, that is, to dilute wine with sparkling water. Later in the Padua area the bitter component of bitter was added (although there was no preferred brand but depended on the availability of the osteria or bar): Select in Venice, Aperol in Padua but also China Martini, Cynar or Campari.
Until the 1990s, the base was simple white wine, later replaced with Prosecco. In 2011, the IBA formalized the cocktail first under the term “Venetian spritz” then simply Spritz.
Three basic ingredients, Prosecco, Bitter and soda, the spritz is the quintessential cocktail, equal to Negroni and Americano, but it is easy to underestimate its preparation and run into mistakes that will make it an alcoholic mix of questionable taste, taking away from the aperitif moment the pleasure of good drinking.
So here are the mistakes not to be made when deciding to make a Spritz.
Prosecco, Bitter, Soda
The ingredients cannot be placed randomly but require a precise order: first Prosecco, then the bitter and at the end the soda. In Venice it is common to use the “3,2,1” rule with three parts wine, two parts bitter and one part soda, while in Padua it is simplified by choosing the formula of one third for each ingredient. But the order of ingredients, in this case, cannot be changed otherwise the result will change a lot.
Not just any glass
One rule only: although spritz is served in numerous glasses, goblets and trinkets the best glass for serving it is the old fashioned, low tumbler ideal for serving “on the rocks” liquors and cocktails with few ingredients. Cups may be more appealing, but no! They are not used. The case is closed.
Ice, always
Like all long cocktails, the spritz includes a generous dose of ice, which must be put in as the very first ingredient and, above all, cannot be reduced or eliminated. The spritz is a light, lovable drink that finds in its freshness a strong characteristic. So ice cannot be eliminated and it is not a trick of the bartender to water down your cocktail. It is a rule and must be respected.
