Italians say we’ve been drinking Aperol Spritz wrong and it ‘makes no sense’

Whilst Aperol Spritz might seem like a summer beverage you savour on a balmy, bright afternoon, there’s absolutely nothing preventing you from enjoying the tipple at any point throughout the year. However, two Italians are insisting we’ve been drinking it incorrectly all along – and it’s not related to the season we’re drinking it.

TikTok content creators Benedetta and Valeria operate a food and wine experience company, situated in Italy. Operating under the name Local Aromas, they’re passionate about demonstrating to people “how Italians really eat, drink and live so you can experience Italy like a local”.

Something they feel strongly about is educating people on the ‘proper’ method of consuming Aperol Spritz, a beloved fizzy wine-based cocktail crafted from Prosecco, Aperol and sparkling water.

In the video, Benedetta declared: “No spritz when you’re sitting down to have a main meal please.”

Valeria clarified that whilst she appreciates spritzes are wonderful, they’ve observed people settling down for a meal and enjoying one alongside their “carbonara, pizza and Saltimbocca”.

Nevertheless, according to Benedetta, this simply “doesn’t make sense”.

Elaborating on the reasoning, Valeria stated: “The spritz is an aperitivo drink and traditionally in Italy when we drink an aperitivo drink, the drink is bitter.”

Benedetta added: “The bitterness serves the purpose of opening your stomach to then go have dinner, so it’s okay to have a spritz with something to nibble on before dinner, but when you sit at the table….”

Valeria chimed in: “It’s bitter. It doesn’t pair with the food. So have the spritz absolutely, every single day. Several times a day as an aperitivo, half an hour, an hour, an hour and a half before you sit down for lunch or dinner. Absolutely perfect.”

However, when it comes to pairing it with your meal, you should opt for something else – perhaps a wine, beer or water. Benedetta explained that the “strong flavours of the spritz will clash with anything you eat”.

So if you’ve ever had an Aperol Spritz with your meal and thought you didn’t enjoy the dish, it could be the “bitterness from the spritz ruining it” instead.

In conclusion, Benedetta stated that while you’re free to do as you please, “this was just our suggestions as two locals that live in Italy”. The comment section was filled with people sharing their thoughts.

One individual commented: “This is universal not just Italy. If I see someone drinking a spritz or cocktails with their meal, I just think they don’t know what they’re doing.”

Another added: “So that’s why Aperol Spritz makes me hungry. Makes total sense. Love the nibbles that come with it.”

However, some said they would continue to drink it as they prefer. One person wrote: “Thank you for your input. But we’ll drink it whenever we want! Grazie.”

And another said: “Well… I’m an adult… I’ll do what I want when I want thank you.”