Aperol
An Italian aperitivo at 11% alcohol, orange-led and only lightly bitter. The Barbieri brothers launched it in Padua in 1919, and its low strength is the defining feature rather than a compromise: a drink built on it stays under the strength of a glass of wine.
Quick Facts
Flavour Profile
Primary Flavours
Tasting Notes
Bright and lightly bitter with dominant sweet orange notes, gentle herbal complexity, and a soft, slightly sweet finish. Lower bitterness and alcohol than many aperitifs.
Recommended Brand
Recommended
Aperol: a single producer, so the only real choice is whether the drink wants this or Campari
Storage & Handling
Store unopened bottles in a cool, dark place. Once opened, keep sealed and refrigerated to maintain freshness and colour.
Shelf Life
Unopened: several years. Once opened: 2–3 months refrigerated
Usage
Poured long in a spritz at two parts to three of prosecco and one of soda, over plenty of ice. In shaken drinks it works at 22.5ml as an equal partner rather than a modifier, which is how the Paper Plane and the Naked and Famous are built.
Padua, 1919
Luigi and Silvio Barbieri put Aperol in front of the public at the Padua International Fair in 1919, seven years after they started work on it. The maker names bitter and sweet orange, rhubarb, gentian and cinchona among the botanicals, which is more disclosure than this category usually offers. It stayed a regional Italian drink for decades after that. Barbero bought the brand in 1991 and Gruppo Campari in 1995, and the international spread came afterwards, driven almost entirely by one serve.
Eleven Per Cent Is the Point
Aperitivo bottles generally sit between 16% and 30% alcohol. Aperol sits at 11%, closer to wine than to a liqueur, and everything about how it is used follows from that number. A spritz built to the standard ratio lands near 8%, so it is a drink that can be had at lunch and followed by an afternoon. It also means Aperol cannot carry a stirred drink the way a stronger bitter can. There is not enough spirit in it to hold that shape together, and a straight substitution gives something watery as well as sweeter.
Three, Two, One
The official ratio is three parts prosecco, two parts Aperol and one part soda, built in a wine glass over ice with a slice of orange. Order matters less than temperature and volume. The glass wants filling with ice rather than sparing it, because a half-iced spritz warms and goes flat within a few minutes. Prosecco rather than champagne is deliberate too: the drink needs a wine with fruit and a soft bead, and a dry, mineral sparkler fights the orange instead of carrying it.
Beyond the Spritz
Two modern classics use it as an equal partner rather than a splash. The Paper Plane divides itself between bourbon, Aperol, Amaro Nonino and lemon in four equal measures, and the Naked and Famous does the same with mezcal, green Chartreuse and lime. Both work because the sweetness and mild bitterness sit between a strong spirit and a sharp citrus without taking either side. One note on the label: the colour comes from Sunset Yellow and Ponceau 4R, two dyes that carry an EU warning about effects on attention in children.
Pro Tip
Aperol brings colour and approachability. Use it to invite drinkers in, then build balance around it.
Top Tips
- Fill the glass with ice rather than rationing it. A warm spritz goes flat before it is half drunk.
- Use prosecco, not champagne. The drink wants fruit and a soft bead, not dry minerality.
- Treat it as an equal measure in shaken drinks. At 11% it is far too light to work as a dash.
Possible Substitutions
- Select aperitivo-style orange liqueurs (profile will vary)
- Sweet vermouth with orange bitters (not equivalent, but workable)
Production Method
Produced by infusing neutral spirit with bitter orange, herbs, and botanicals, then sweetened and diluted to a lower alcohol strength for aperitif use.
History & Context
Created in 1919 in Padua, Italy, Aperol was designed as a lighter, more approachable aperitif. It rose to global prominence through the Aperol Spritz, becoming synonymous with relaxed Italian aperitivo culture.
Common Questions
What's the difference between Aperol and Campari?
Strength, mostly. At 11% Aperol is less than half the alcohol, which changes what it can do rather than only how it tastes. It leads with orange where Campari leads with herbs, and it lacks the spirit to anchor a stirred drink, so the two are not interchangeable in either direction.
What is the correct Aperol Spritz ratio?
Three parts prosecco, two parts Aperol and one part soda, in a wine glass packed with ice. That is the maker’s own build. The ice is not a garnish: a spritz served in a half-filled glass warms quickly, loses its bubbles and turns syrupy well before the glass is empty.
What else does Aperol do?
It works as an equal measure in shaken drinks. The Paper Plane splits four ways between bourbon, Aperol, Amaro Nonino and lemon, and the Naked and Famous does the same with mezcal, green Chartreuse and lime. In both of them it bridges a strong spirit and a sharp citrus.
How strong is Aperol?
11% alcohol, which is wine strength rather than liqueur strength. A spritz built to the standard ratio lands near 8%. That is the appeal and the limitation together: it suits a long afternoon drink, and it cannot hold up a stirred, spirit-forward one.