The Spritz, the Aperitivo from Venice!

When you visit Venice, you'll see everywhere laid-back bars with tables out in the (narrow) streets serving an orange-golden drink in low cocktail glasses (someone call it Tumbler). That, ladies and gentlemen, is a Spritz. It is the most typical aperitivo veneziano. To tell you the truth, is pretty popular around the north-east region of Italy, the so-called Triveneto. Even if when you walk in the different campi and calle you'll see many tourist sipping it all day round, you'd better know that is an aperitivo, and it's better to enjoy it before dinner, thanks to its delicate bitter taste that makes you eager for something salted.

The Prosecco, one of the best sparkling wines ever

Under the name of "Spritz Veneziano", it is present in the official IBA (international barista association) official cocktail list. Actually there are many, many version of it, even though our favourite is the one that made it to the IBA shortlist. This version is obtained mixing the delicious Prosecco (a noble sparkling wine typical of the Veneto region, one of the very best sparkling wines in Europe for us), with a bitter drink, so typical of the italian gastronomy, like the Aperol and some soda water to add just a little bit more of bubbles.

If you walks out of the beaten path (things that we would advice you to do, since the majority of the artistical treasure of the city are hidden by a maze of small street) you would discover another city, so much quiet and laid back, with much more less tourists, where they would serve you another kind of Spritz, made of a third part of white wine, a third of bitter and a third part of soda water, or even the delicious italian sparking water.

The origin of the Spritz is not so well known, even if it is believed that it all begun during the austrian domination, when the soldier, not used to the strenght of the delicious venetian red wines, decided to mix it with some sparkling water. This mix has been very successful, still nowadays in the north east Italy they perfectly know what it is and they call it "vino spruzzato".
What is sure is that the modern cocktail was created during the 1920s or the 1930s, in the golden age of the cocktail. We deduce it because the Aperol bitter was invented in 1919 in Padua. Its name is derived from the german verb spritzen, that is to spurt.

In all the Triveneto area there are thousands of different kinds of the Spritz, and the differences is the quintessential ingredient that makes italian gastronomy so great and so funny! For each one product, there is as many variations as are the town producing it. So, instead of the Aperol, in many areas of the Veneto you can make your Spritz with another delicious bitter, the Select. In the area of Pordenone the Spritz is called Furlan, and it is served often with an olive in the glass, while it is usually served with a slice of orange or even lemon.

A Spritz made of Select bitter and an olive in it. There you have it!

Spumante Ferrari. When it comes to bubbles, go Italian.

In the Alto Adige-Sudtirol and in the german-influenced areas, the Spritz is served still nowadays in the same old austrian way, with red or white wine and sparkling water. If you move a little bit toward Slovenia, near the border, they will serve it only with white wine and soda water. Why don't you try it in Monfalcone or in the magnificent and unique Trieste, a city that's mitteleuropean and mediterranean, very fascinating!
And talking about wonderful cities, what about the charming Trento? There they make the Spritz using their gorgeous world-famous sparkling wine, the Spumante Ferrari.

As you can see, there are infinite variations of the Spritz, and today is the day to try it, given its fast ascent all over the World!

Much of the fame of the Spritz as an aperitivo is due to the 2008 tv advertising of the Aperol, that globalized the Spritz as a mass product. The advertising is simply irresistible, just as the drink!

Amazing the song too, "Street Life" by Randy Crawford! Are you already in a Spritz mood? We bet so, here's how to do it at home!

For those in a hurry, ready-to-drink Spritz by Aperol. Come on, take your time!

- Take a low glass, like a Tumbler or an Old-Fashoned, and pour three parts of Prosecco sparkling wine or Ferrari Spumante, two parts of Aperol bitter and a part of soda water.

- There you have it! Enjoy it in a party with your friends, along some antipasti like prosciutto or salami. Very important: this cocktail is to be drink with your friends and your dearest ones!

Sparkling greetings!

Tom

Welcome summer! Tiramisù popsicle recipe

To celebrate the coming of summer, we'll bring you a popsicle based on a very classical italian sweet: the World renown Tiramisù.

The Tiramisù is a very simple sweet dish, but it's not a classic in the sense of "old", it's a rather "new classic", since it was invented in...1962! I mean, come on! That's the day before yesterday! ;) How could people live without this marvel?

The original recipe was an idea of Mrs. Alba Campeol, in the beautiful city of Treviso, very near to Venice. She affirms that the idea came out after giving birth to her first son, when her mother and her mother-in-law used to bring her coffee and ladyfingers and tell her: "eat them all, that'll be good for you!". In Italian we say "tirare su" (rise up, come on!) when someone needs to get better, and starting with this idea, she decided together with the cook of the restaurant they owned to add some nourishing eggs with sugar and the mascarpone cheese.

Even though many (or everybody) thinks that Tiramisù has some liquor in it, it actually hasn't. Or shouldn't have, according Mrs. Campeol's original recipe, since it was precisely designed to be fit for everyone, from the childhood to the oldest one, and specially for those who needed to "tirarsi su", to recover themselves, making the liquor unfit for the recipe. The many tourist that visited the enchanting city of Treviso (we would advice you to do so!) were blown away from the simple and genial recipe, making it Worldwide famous, and this lead to the many versions of this sweet that we have nowadays.

Here you are an interview to Mrs. Campeol (in Italian) where she tells us the history and she also regrets not having patented her recipe in the Sixties! We're thankful and grateful anyway, Mrs. Campeol!

 
Ingredients:

• 4 egg yolks
• 2 egg whites
• 100 g. of sugar
• 400 g. of mascarpone cheese
• 3 or 4 Savoiardi biscuits or ladyfingers
• cocoa powder
• a cup of coffee
• a pinch of salt

Preparation:

1- Beat the egg yolks until they get foamy with an electric blender. You're looking for a pale white colour.

2- Add to the previous mix the mascarpone cheese and mix it togheter.
 
3- Beat the eggs white until they become foamy and we add this to the previous mix with round movements, from bottom to top in order to let the foam stand up straight.

4- We dip the Savoiardi or the ladyfingers in the coffee (it can be decaffeinated, instant coffee or espresso, you choose).

5- We put our mix in our popsicle or ice cream moulds, alternating with coffee-wet ladyfingers and cocoa powder and our mix again, as many times as we want, until the mould is filled and we end with some cocoa powder, then we put our wooden stick. We can also decide to put the ladyfingers at the center of the mould and the mix around them. This time I decided to do it with some little pieces of ladyfingers, that's a matter of tastes!

6- Put it into the freezer, if it's possible from a day to another, since it's a very creamy mix and it needs a lot of cold.

This time I've made it as a popsicle, but you can do it in a plum cake mould too.
Before pouring the mix, I cover the bottom with a plastic wrap, in order to avoid that our Tiramisù does not sticks to the bottom and can be removed easily. This version is to be made just like the popsicles, but with some more savoiardi biscuits and forming and alternate structure, just like the traditional Tiramisù: biscuits, mascarpone mix, cocoa powder and others biscuits, in that orden. This is what is called a "semifreddo", a sweet between a gelato and a traditional cake.

Happy start of Summer to everyone! Enjoy this ice creamy version of the Tiramisù!

Greetings,

AnGie