Non-Alcoholic Aperol Spritz: How to Make One, and the Cans That Do It for You
By Jason LaValla, founder, Casamara Club · September 2026
Jump to: What a spritz is, and what Aperol does in one · The from-scratch non-alcoholic spritz · Three variations · The cans that do it for you · FAQ
An Aperol Spritz is the drink most people picture when they hear "aperitivo": orange, bitter, fizzy, on ice in a wine glass at six o'clock. Making one without the liqueur is a real recipe, because Aperol does three jobs in the glass and each needs a stand-in. Below: the from-scratch version with measures, three variations, then the two cans we make that skip the prep. The cans are ours and labeled that way.
The short answer: A spritz is three parts prosecco, two parts bitter liqueur, one part soda, over ice in a wine glass with an orange slice. To make one without alcohol, replace the liqueur with fresh grapefruit and orange juice, a little simple syrup, and a dash of non-alcoholic bitters, and replace the prosecco with dry sparkling white grape juice or plain soda water. Or pour a bitter aperitivo soda over ice with an orange slice and call it done.
What a spritz is, and what Aperol does in one
A spritz is a Venetian aperitivo built on a 3-2-1 ratio: three parts prosecco, two parts a bitter liqueur, one part soda water, over ice in a large wine glass with an orange slice. Aperol is the liqueur most people reach for. Its maker puts it at 11% alcohol, and the finished spritz at about 9%.
Aperol does three things in the glass.
- Bitter orange and a herbal finish. Its maker describes citrus peel up front, a hint of vanilla, and a lasting herbal, bitter finish, and lists bitter and sweet oranges, rhubarb, and gentian among the ingredients.
- Sweetness. It is a liqueur, so much of the drink's sugar comes from it; a stand-in that is only bitter and sour tastes thin.
- The color. Grapefruit and orange juice get you to a pale sunset; blood orange gets closer.
The prosecco is the easier half: fizz, a little fruit, dryness. A dry sparkling white grape juice or a dealcoholized sparkling wine covers most of that.
The from-scratch non-alcoholic spritz
Fresh grapefruit and orange juice, a little simple syrup, and non-alcoholic bitters stand in for the liqueur; dry sparkling white grape juice and soda water stand in for the prosecco.
Non-Alcoholic Spritz
One drink. Large wine glass, lots of ice.
- 2 oz fresh grapefruit juice (ruby or pink)
- 1 oz fresh orange juice
- ½ oz simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, stirred until clear)
- 2 dashes non-alcoholic aromatic or orange bitters, if you have them
- 3 oz dry sparkling white grape juice, or a dealcoholized sparkling wine
- 1 oz soda water
- 1 orange slice
- Fill a large wine glass with ice.
- Add the grapefruit juice, orange juice, simple syrup, and bitters.
- Pour in the sparkling grape juice slowly, down the side of the glass, so it keeps its fizz.
- Top with the soda water and give it one short stir.
- Drop in the orange slice.
What to expect: paler than the original, and less bitter unless the bitters go in. If it tastes flat, add grapefruit before you add syrup. If it tastes sharp, a pinch of salt rounds it faster than sugar does. For a drier drink, use soda water in place of the grape juice and add a quarter ounce more syrup.
Three variations
Each keeps the build above and changes the still ingredients.
Grapefruit spritz
Use 3 oz grapefruit juice and skip the orange juice. Add a pinch of salt with the syrup; garnish with a grapefruit wedge and a rosemary sprig. The most bitter of the three and the closest to the original.
Hugo-style spritz
The Hugo is an Alpine spritz built on elderflower, mint, and lime instead of a bitter liqueur. Elderflower cordial is a syrup made by steeping elderflower blossoms in sugar syrup with lemon; it is sold bottled. Use ¾ oz elderflower cordial, ½ oz lime juice, and a few mint leaves slapped once between your palms, then top with 4 oz sparkling grape juice or soda water. Mint sprig and lime wheel. Sweet and floral, with no bitterness at all.
Blood orange spritz
Use 2 oz blood orange juice and 1 oz lemon juice in place of the grapefruit and orange, and keep the bitters. This one gets you the color. Blood oranges are a winter fruit in the US, roughly December to March, a little later from California.
The cans that do it for you, two ways
We make two drinks built for exactly this glass, and both are available now. Superclasico Aperitivo carries the flavor and the body of a spritz; Sera carries the spritz flavors with the extra-dry taste profile that runs through every one of our botanical sodas. Which one you want depends on how bitter you like the original.
The Riviera spritz: Sera
Sera is our Riviera Style Botanical Soda. The flavor is "reminiscent of an apéro spritz—tart grapefruit, delicate spice—with the crisp, refreshing character of a dry sparkling rosé." It is built on grapefruit, cinnamon, rhubarb root, chinotto, allspice, and anise, sweetened with orange blossom honey, with a little sea salt. A 12 oz can carries 15 calories and 4 g of sugar. Grapefruit and rhubarb root cover the bitter, the honey covers the sweet, so the can is already the whole drink.
To serve it as a spritz: fill a large wine glass with ice, pour the Sera slowly down the side, add an orange slice. That is it. For more of the original's fruit and sweetness, add a splash of sparkling grape juice on top.
From the product page, for a table where some people are drinking: "Start with your spirit of choice and ice at the bottom of your favorite small, unfussy glassware. Pour your soda down the wall of the glass, not directly over the ice. We prefer the bottles for mixing, because they are carbonated higher but cans will do. Garnish with an orange or grapefruit twist. We think Sera mixes particularly well with rum or tequila, for a paloma."
The bitter one: Superclasico Aperitivo
Superclasico Aperitivo is the first Superclasico: "A full-flavored, bittersweet non-alcoholic cocktail. More refreshing than a Negroni, more flavor than a spritz. Chinotto and red currant up front, vanilla and clove through the middle, kola nut and orris root on the finish." It is built on red currant juice, demerara cane sugar, lemon juice, and extracts of chinotto, kola nut, orris root, vanilla, juniper, allspice, and clove. An 8 oz can carries 48 calories and 12 g of sugar. For people who order the spritz for the bitterness. It is not subtle.
Serve it the way the carton says: "Serve it cold over ice with a slice of orange. Mix it if you'd like. Keep the can on the table, and top off as you go."
Our suggestion, the 50/50 spritz: half a can of Superclasico Aperitivo and half a can of Sera over ice in a wine glass, orange wheel on top. The Aperitivo is the bitter half, the Sera is the grapefruit half.
From the product page: "Start with your spirit of choice and ice at the bottom of your favorite small, unfussy glassware. Pour the Aperitivo down the wall of the glass, not directly over the ice. Superclasico comes in 8oz cans only, and they will do just fine. Garnish with an orange wheel. If your whiskey and soda is getting boring, use Superclasico in place of soda water or cola. We think the Aperitivo mixes particularly well with bourbon whiskey, dry gin, or aged rum."
| Route | Bitterness | Sugar per drink | Time | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| From scratch (recipe above) | Low to medium, depends on bitters | About 25 to 30 g | 3 minutes plus juicing | A fruit bowl and a free evening |
| Sera over ice | Medium, tart grapefruit | 4 g per 12 oz can | 30 seconds | The dry, Riviera version |
| Superclasico Aperitivo over ice | High, bittersweet | 12 g per 8 oz can | 30 seconds | People who order the spritz for the bitter |
More serves, spritzes included, on the recipes page and in how we serve Casamara Club. We compared the wider field in the best non-alcoholic aperitivos.
Available now
Sera
Riviera Style Botanical Soda
The sea goes dark under a warm, pink twilight sky. Street lamps flicker on.
Shop Sera →Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is a spritz without alcohol called?
A: There is no settled name. "Non-alcoholic spritz," "virgin spritz," and "spritz mocktail" all get used. We call ours by the can.
Q: What can I use instead of Aperol?
A: For a from-scratch drink, fresh grapefruit juice with a little orange juice, simple syrup, and non-alcoholic bitters covers the bitter, the sweet, and some of the color. For a pour-and-go drink, a bitter aperitivo soda over ice does the same job in one can; ours are Sera and Superclasico Aperitivo.
Q: Is there a non-alcoholic prosecco?
A: Dealcoholized sparkling wines exist; they are made as wine, then have the alcohol removed. Dry sparkling white grape juice is the cheaper route and works in every recipe here. Plain soda water makes a drier, lighter spritz.
Q: How much sugar is in a non-alcoholic spritz?
A: The from-scratch version above carries roughly 25 to 30 g, mostly from the juices. A Sera over ice is 4 g per 12 oz can; a Superclasico Aperitivo over ice is 12 g per 8 oz can. Aperol's maker does not publish a sugar figure on its site, so we do not print one.
Q: What glass should a spritz go in?
A: A large wine glass or balloon, filled with ice. Sparkling goes in last, poured down the side, so it keeps its fizz. At home we pour ours into whatever small, unfussy glass is closest, and nobody has complained.
Sources
- Aperol, "Aperol Spritz Cocktail" and FAQ pages (aperol.com/en-us, "Most asked questions" and "Ingredients & nutrition"): 3-2-1 ratio, 11% ABV for Aperol and 9% for the finished spritz, wine glass and orange slice, tasting description; no sugar figure published. Aperol, "Aperol Tasting Notes" (aperol.com/en-au/blog): bitter and sweet oranges, rhubarb, gentian. Read September 6, 2026.
- Difford's Guide: Aperol Spritz and Hugo Spritz entries (ratios, Hugo composition, spritz build).
- USDA FoodData Central: sugar in grapefruit juice, orange juice, and sparkling white grape juice, used for the approximate per-drink figure. Elderflower cordial definition: Wikipedia, "Elderflower cordial". Blood orange season: Sunkist Growers, "Blood Oranges".
- Casamara Club product pages for Sera and Superclasico Aperitivo, read September 6, 2026.
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