When the golden hour hits, there’s nothing better than a refreshing, boozy aperitif. Not to be confused with the after-dinner digestif (drank to aid in post-meal digestion), an aperitif is a pre-meal drink that’s usually low in alcohol and is imbibed to stimulate the appetite and prepare you for the impending meal. Often enjoyed with light appetizers or bar snacks, there might not be a better happy hour drink. Especially during the summer months.
“Aperitifs are pre-meal drinks, designed to warm up your palate. Wake your senses and get your metabolism working,” according to the Diageo Bar Academy.
The aperitif trend
As we mentioned, a perfect aperitif should stimulate digestion so that the meal you’re about to eat won’t sit so heavy in your gut. While there are many different kinds of aperitifs, they are often herbal, dry, and range from bitter to bittersweet in flavor. Popular aperitifs include Campari, Aperol, vermouth, and various sparkling wines. These are often enjoyed on their own or mixed into a variety of cocktails.
The latter has been trending for the last few years as drinkers look for refreshing aperitif cocktails to enjoy during the humid afternoon hours of the summer. In my years of writing about alcohol, I’ve found that not only is the aperitif paired with a light snack a great precursor to a meal, it’s also the centerpiece of a time to socialize with friends and family during the proverbial golden hour.
Fresh aperitif cocktails
Now that you’ve learned a little bit about the appeal of the aperitif, it’s time to find some to add to your home mixology repertoire this summer. Below, you’ll find some of the best, freshest, bittersweet aperitif cocktails. Keep scrolling to see them all, learn a little about them, and find step-by-step directions to craft them at home.
Aperol Spritz
When it comes to aperitif cocktails, there’s no mixed drink more popular in recent years than the Aperol Spritz. While the concept of the Spritz has its origins in the 1800s, the Aperol Spritz as we know it today, has its origins in 1919. That was when the Barbieri brothers launched Aperol in Padua, Italy. The drink itself was popularized in the 1950s, this was when the brothers combined their beloved bittersweet Aperol with soda water and Prosecco to create the effervescent, refreshing drink that’s still wildly popular today.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz Aperol
- 2 oz Prosecco
- Soda water topper
- Orange wheel
Method: Add ice to a large wine or balloon glass. Pour in Aperol and Prosecco and top with soda water. Stir gently to combine. Garnish with an orange wheel.
Negroni
If the Aperol Spritz is the most popular aperitif cocktail, the Negroni is a close second. Slightly more bittersweet than the latter, it was created in Florence, Italy in 1919. This is when a man named Count Camillo Negroni stopped into the Caffè Casoni and asked the bartender to make a variation on the popular Americano, swapping the soda water for gin to create a boozier version.
Ingredients:
- 1 oz London dry gin
- 1 oz Campari
- 1 oz sweet red vermouth
- Orange twist
Method: Add ice to a mixing glass. Pour in the London dry gin, Campari, and sweet red vermouth. Stir gently to combine. Strain into an ice-filled Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
Boulevardier
There’s a reason this aperitif cocktail has an exotic name. This pre-Prohibition cocktail was first crafted at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris in the 1920s. A variation on the Negroni with whiskey instead of gin, it was created by American-born magazine publisher Erskine Gwynne. More than 100 years later, it’s still a golden hour staple.
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 oz rye whiskey
- 1 oz Campari
- 1 oz sweet red vermouth
- Orange twist
Method: Add ice to an Old Fashioned glass. Pour in the rye whiskey, Campari, and sweet red vermouth. Stir to combine and chill. Garnish with an orange twist.
Gin & tonic
When it comes to summery aperitif cocktails, it’s difficult to beat the appeal of classic Gin & Tonic. This drink has its roots in the British Royal Navy in the 1800s. Soldiers were issued quinine (a major ingredient in tonic water) to fight malaria. Since it wasn’t very palatable, they would add their daily ration of gin as well as other ingredients like lime and sugar to make it less bitter. Over the years, this classic, thirst-quenching, lightly bitter, piney drink become a golden hour mainstay.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz London dry gin
- Tonic topper
- Lime wedge
Method: Add ice to a Highball glass. Add the gin. Top it with tonic water. Stir gently to combine and cool the drink. Garnish with a lime wedge.
Bottom line
As yet another summer comes to an end, it’s in your best interest to enjoy a golden hour or two. The best way to do that is with some light snacks and an aperitif cocktail or two. You’ll be very happy you did.
