Did you know that drinking a spritz can be considered a rebellious act? Well, more or less. The aperitif Spritz is a Venetian must: take everything away from them but not their spritz. Often the drinks origins are confused with legends so much that in many cities in and out of the Veneto region claim to be the birthplace.
In reality, the spritz is a bequeathal of the 1800’s Austrian Domination in Italy. The word spritz derives from spritzen which signifies “splash” in German. Originally a beverage composed only of water and white wine until the Venetians, as they say, colored it red just before 1848 as a sign of protest against the Austrian oppressors (alright maybe today the effect isn’t quite so subversive).
Now that we know its origins, if you’re on vacation in Venice, you’ve at least got to drink one. But every spritz has its own taste, we could say. Always keeping the same dosages: 1/3 liquor, 1/3 white wine or Prosecco and 1/3 selz (even the official percentages of the manufacturers can vary).
The fundamental ingredients anyway, after having added ice, olive, orange or lemon, is Venice. Bàcari and bars facing the canal, campi, campielli are the best addition to your unforgettable aperitif, possibly drunk at sunset, wishing time would stop.
Certainly the most requested, it is the classic color orange with a sweet delightful taste.
A crimson red, and just as its name, decisively bitter, has a higher grade of alcohol than the aperol spritz and is very diffused in Venice.
The Cynar is bitter due to its 13 herbs and plants. It is drunk even straight up after dinner. In the Spritz version it becomes amber colored and recalls its artichoke essence.
For connoisseurs, the Select spritz has a particular taste, not for every palette. The color is a fainter red compared to Bitter but the taste is balanced between sweet and intense.