The Aperol Spritz is one of the "it" drinks for summer of 2017 and you know I had to add a tropical twist to it. I give you my Tropical Rosé Aperol Spritz Cocktail.

I can see why the Aperol spritz is such a popular cocktail. Its light, refreshing, delicious and perfect for hot summer afternoons. It became popular in Italy in the 1950's using the Italian aperitif, Aperol, which originated in 1919. Spritz cocktails have been around forever in many countries and have almost always consisted of a wine, a bitter liqueur and fizz from some sort of soda water. An adult soda of sorts.

Aperol is the bitter liqueur in these cocktails and it is orange hued, low in alcohol and has a slightly bitter citrusy taste. Campari is its distant cousin that is much stronger flavored and much stronger in the bitter flavor department. I much prefer Aperol, not a fan of super bitter drinks, but just a little bit of bitter to balance out the sweet is needed.

I think not only is the flavor of this cocktail is what makes it so popular but also the color. The bright orange of the Aperol reminds me of summertime especially of late afternoon sunshine. This cocktail is often served as a pre-dinner cocktail. Something to sip on while deciding where to go or what to make. Or you can drink it just because. Really no need for a reason to sip one of these gorgeous cocktails. In fact they are still such a popular cocktail in Italy, it is said that 300,000 (That is three hundred thousand) of these cocktails are sipped daily there. Every day. That is a lot of Aperol spritzes!

These tropical rosé Aperol spritzes couldn't be easier to make. The traditional cocktail is a 3:2:1 ratio of prosecco, Aperol and soda water. I exchanged the prosecco for this year's other popular drink, Rosé, and I used a sparkling Rosé. I also added in passion fruit and calamansi lime juices and topped with lemon pellegrino. YUM. I made up a pitcher of cocktails, partially to use this fun new cocktail pitcher, and to make up several servings at once for friends. OR to have all week long for myself. If you don't serve it right away don't add the Rosé until right before serving so it doesn't lose its fizz.

I hope you enjoy this tropical rosé Aperol spritz as much as I do!!

Tropical Rosé Aperol Spritz Cocktail

Shanna

A tropical twist on the oh so popular Aperol Spritz with sparkling roseé in place of traditional prosecco. A refreshing and delicious cocktail.

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Prep Time 5

Additional Time 5

Total Time 10

Course Recipes

Servings 1 Cocktail or 1 Pitcher of Cocktails (serves 6-8)

Ingredients

For 1 cocktail:

Ice
2 oz Aperol Aperitivo liqueur
1 oz Passion Fruit Juice chilled ( I like Ceres brand)
½ oz Calamansi Lime Juice chilled
1 oz Pellegrino lemon or plain, chilled
3 oz Sparkling Rosé chilled

Garnish:

Orange slice
Lemon slice yellow or pink
Pineapple leaves
Bamboo straw

For 1 pitcher of Cocktails:

2 C Aperol Aperitivo liqueur
1 C Passion Fruit Juice chilled (I like Ceres brand)
½ C Calamansi Lime Juice chilled
1 C Pellegrino lemon or plain, chilled
1 750 ml bottle Approx 3 Cups Sparkling Rosé, chilled

Instructions

For one cocktail:

Fill a 10 ounce glass with ice
Layer in the ingredients in this order - aperol, passion fruit juice, calamansi lime juice, pellegrino. Add the sparkling rosé slowly so it doesn’t fizz over the glass.
Garnish with a lemon slice layered with an orange slice ( using a cocktail skewer to hold them together) two pineapple leaves and a paper straw. Drink immediately.

For a pitcher of cocktails :

Combine everything in the pitcher ( except for the sparkling rosé) and stir. Keep chilled until ready to use.
Just before serving add in the sparkling rosé then pour into glasses filled with ice.
Garnish each cocktail the same as the individual cocktail and serve immediately.

Notes

You can find Calamansi juice in any well stocked Asian or international grocery store. I have seen Calamansi juice sold at Trader Joes so it is becoming more popular. It is a bit sweeter than traditional lime juice.