Three Wine Spritzer Recipes to Enhance Your Next Cocktail

As a symbol of the suburban culture of the 1970s and 1980s, wine spritzers have a rich history. As Talia Baiocchi and Leslie Pariseau note in their 2016 book: Spritzsome believe the spritzer began as a way for beer-loving Austro-Hungarian soldiers in northeastern Italy to dilute the region’s wine with a “spritz” of still water, a term derived from the German spritzwhich means ‘to squirt’.

†[But it] really becomes the modern spritz when it takes on its now inseparable sparkle,” they wrote.

The easy-drinking wine spritzer as we largely know it today really got its start in the early 1800s when soda siphons were developed that delivered seltzer. Italians soon added their native wine-based aperitifs and bitter liqueurs to the mix, leading to drinks like the iconic Aperol Spritz.

Today, bartenders are modernizing spritzers and spritzes as the demand for sessionable, low-alcohol drinks grows. Wine, whether still, sparkling or fortified, remains at the heart of the mix, but from then on, anything is possible.

“Spritzen are great — you can do just about anything in them,” says Natalie Grindstaff, director of restaurants for Artisan hospitalityowned by Tom Colicchio, including restaurants such as the Italian-oriented Vallata in New York City.

To customize your own version, Grindstaff recommends tinkering with the various components to see what you like. For example, her Brooklyn Spritz subs in grapefruit soda as a flavorful alternative to regular club soda, but everything from coconut LaCroix to ginger beer can fizz.

From there, think of small additions like vermouth or aperitif wines, liqueurs or syrups, or a splash of citrus or dashes of aromatic bitters to add complexity.

“The riffs are endless,” Grindstaff says. “But it’s an easy and forgiving drink, making it one of the best home drinks.”

This article originally appeared in the May 2022 issue of: wine lover magazine. Click here to subscribe today!

Published on May 10, 2022