“One of my favorite drinks to make in the summer,” says summer-loving Giada De Laurentiis in her August 6 Instagram Video, referring to the Aperol spritz. “It has the perfect combination of bitter and sweet.” And while recipes vary slightly across the world of spritz lovers, an Aperol spritz must include both bitter (Aperol) and sweet (prosecco) to be a good spritz.
According Bi Rite Market, it was the Aperol brothers who came up with the idea for the Aperol spritz in the 1950s, taking their eponymous, bittersweet amaro syrup and balancing it with a splash of prosecco to cut through the bitterness. De Laurentiis does the same in his Instagram video, adding a few flavor enhancers (like grapefruit soda and a pinch of Angostura bitters) and another big twist.
“A whole bottle of prosecco,” De Laurentiis announces happily, pouring the sweet, sparkling wine into a pitcher. This is no ordinary recipe, after all – it’s a “jackpot” Aperol spritz, fit to feed a crowd. “Makes you feel like you’re in the middle of summer,” the chef says, much to the delight (and heart-eyed emojis) of many in the comments section. “Yummm,” wrote Katie Lee Biegel, fellow Food Network personality and apparent spritzer sister. “Now it’s like summer,” another commenter wrote, tagging a friend. In fact, many followers have included other Instagram handles in their comments to the post, indicating how user-friendly the Aperol spritz de Laurentiis jackpot really is.
