At 3 p.m. on any given day during ski season, the energy on top of Piz La Ila in Alta Badia is electric. Just off the gondola entrance sits Club Moritzino, one of the Dolomites’ most enduring mountain huts and a buzzing lunch and apres-ski destination. Its elegant, light-bathed restaurant is famous for its seafood-heavy menu—a rarity in the Alps. Outside, however, the atmosphere sizzles as the DJ sets the mood, and guests trade in their skis for an unlikely sparkling treat: a spritz.
For many of us, a spritz is best enjoyed under a blazing sun, preferably next to the water, maybe wearing as little as possible. But in Italy, the birthplace of this iconic cocktail, a spritz has become a year-round indulgence. And as an après refreshment? Well, for many, it’s the perfect way to cap off a day of shredding the mountain. But this iconic sparkling concoction’s popularity as a cold-weather beverage isn’t limited to Italy. A spritz in the winter has become a global movement.
“A refreshing spritz on a sunny patio after a day on the slopes can be the perfect transition to the evening activities,” says Zack Lavoie, bar manager at Wild Blue Restaurant in Whistler, Canada. There, you can sample his zero-proof spritzed take on the negroni, a popular cold-weather cocktail. Called the No-groni Sbagliato, this alcohol-free version combines Noa Sweet Vermouth, Martini Vibrante, and Glimmer Blanc de Blanc sparkling wine from the Okanagan Valley.
Lavoie says that adding sweet vermouth brings more spice and richness to the drink, making it a better suited for cold weather. Indeed, Simon Ford, founder of Fords Gin, says the secret to winter-izing the spritz is simple: replace some of the lighter elements you typically associate with the drink with ingredients that have fuller flavors. His newly released Sloe Gin, which infuses a traditional gin recipe with sloe berries to give it that signature red color and a deeper, fruitier profile (think stewed prunes, raisins, dark cherry, grapefruit, and a hint of clove), has proven to be an especially popular choice for bartenders looking to create a seasonal spritz.
”I see a cold season spritz as being something that combines long and refreshing with fuller and richer flavours,” he says, adding that Sloe Gin introduces some of those warming dried-fruit flavors that you’re unlikely to find in a summertime spritz. At legendary New York City cocktail bar PDT, you can sample this approach with a sip of the Anglitaliano Spritz, which mixes sloe gin, Italian vermouth, and Lambrusco in an icy goblet.
Fords loves the Italian vermouth’s bittersweet notes of baking spices, clove, nutmeg, and caramel, but he’s especially happy with how the Lambrusco adds not just bubbles but depth, too. Whereas a prosecco delivers a lighter, crisper fizz, a red Lambrusco might layer on more structure and earthiness. “Obviously, the Lambrusco’s bubbles lift the cocktail,” he says. “But you also infuse the drink with the richness of red wine.”
Another beloved NYC drinks destination, Dante, is bullish on having spritzes on its menu regardless of the season. In fact, as it expands beyond its Big Apple locations with outposts and pop-ups in cities including Beverly Hills, Aspen, and London, a spritz is always available. And, not just any spritz: there are actually a few of them on every menu, from the classic Aperol, to a pineapple daiquiri spritz, to a Sbagliato.
“When we opened Dante Aspen in 2020, our most popular cocktail was the Aperol Spritz,” says Linden Pride, co-owner of Dante. “The sparkling wine and amaro [make for] easy drinking, especially at altitude. The drink may have come to popularity in the summer, but the low ABV and sessionability make it great for all seasons.”
This winter, bartenders at every Dante address (from the original on Macdougal Street, to its residency in Claridge’s in London) are slinging the Cranberry Spritz, which combines cranberry juice and Perrier-Jouët champagne with a housemade cranberry syrup spiced with cardamom and vanilla. Pride explains that not only does the syrup feature the warm spice that you associate with colder weather, but the rosemary sprig and skewed cranberry garnish lend the drink a festive twist, too.
In Denver, Jovanina’s Broken Italian calls on a cranberry-rosemary shrub as a defining flavor in its Neve Rosa (or pink snow in Italian), served via its tableside digestif cart. This sparkling cocktail is actually a riff on the Cosmopolitan, subbing out the Cointreau or Triple Sec in favor of Contratto Aperitif, an Italian liqueur similar to Campari. “The addition of prosecco and club soda in this cocktail really works to unlock the rosemary and make this smell indisputably Italian and wintery, despite consisting of what many people would call warm-weather ingredients,” says general manager John Long.
In Paris, Boubalé also plays around with its spritz for the winter by veering away from the drink’s bitterness and citrus-forward profile. Its Julnâr is full of texture and subtle layers, mixing champagne with sea lettuce, honey, celery, and vodka infused with pine needles. Instead of the sharp contrasting flavors that a traditional spritz provides, this one is all about umami, minerality, and a softness that suits the way most people want to drink during the winter.
But perhaps the most compelling reason why a spritz makes for a perfect wintertime drink is that it reminds us of summer. Back in Denver at The Greenwich, beverage director Alex Caffery just launched what she’s calling the Blood Orange Rosemary Cello Spritz, which is built around a housemade blood orange and rosemary limoncello—then, just add prosecco and soda water. Caffery admits that this has a higher ABV than you typically expect of a spritz, which might offer the warmth needed to combat bitter winter chills in Colorado.
“A spritz in the winter feels like the cocktail equivalent of a happy lamp,” she explains. “It’s not the same as a full day of seventy-degree, radiant sunshine. But it can certainly make a gloomy, grey, damp, dark day a little bit brighter.”