Sips Italiana
Last September, we had the opportunity to spend 7 days in the Italian countryside. Escorted by the Italian Trade Commission, we visited a combination of 10 different distilleries in the Northern and Southern regions of Italy. We met the owners and distillers of mostly family owned companies while sipping from their expansive spirits portfolio.
Additionally, we visited several popular Italian bars to research how the locals enjoyed these classic spirits. What stood out the most was the Aperitivo Cocktail hour. Typically, when one orders a drink at an Italian bar, some snack or complementary bite is served as well (and not just bowls of pretzels and nuts).
This is brillant. This culture of drinking and eating kept us at each bar longer than expected. The assortments of cheese, sliced meat or fresh veggies encouraged us to socialize more and order more drinks because the snacks were free.
Some establishments like the world-famous, Martini Bar in Turin, Italy require guests to stand at the bar to enjoy the free nibbles; this encouraged us to dance and move more about the space.
Upon returning home, we were reminded how solitary American bar culture can be. We looked for an opportunity to share the concept of Aperitivo hour in Charleston. Our annual Spoleto Festival provided that opportunity. Charleston has celebrated its connection to its Italian sister city Spoleto since 1977. For 17 days, the Holy City hosts international musicians and artists for plays, art shows and performances primarily focused on our art and historical connection to Spoleto. This festival served as the perfect setting for our event series celebrating our food and beverage connection to Italy.
Bitter & Bubbly
That’s how I would describe an Aperol Spritz. I would also use words like: refreshing, light and social. This low ABV cocktail has been enjoyed in Italy for ages but is still largely under appreciated in America. While the bold crimson hue is attractive, the bright bitter flavor can shock the palate.
Our Spritz Pop Up was the 1st introduction of the cocktail to the majority of our audience. Surrounded by Italian inspired art, The Meyer Vogl Gallery served as an excellent setting for our cocktail hour.
The Aperol Spritz cocktail is fairly simple: mix 1 part Aperol, 1 part Champagne (or some other sweet bubbles) plus 1 part club soda over ice with orange peel garnish. That’s it!
Aperol is a bitter liqueur made from orange peels. Its classified as an aperitif because it is usually enjoyed; before a meal; the bitter flavor stimulates the appetite. Which is why there are always snacks nearby when the cocktail is served.
Lemon Lover
The name speaks for itself. There is a sense of familiarity with this cocktail. This bright yellow beverage has been seen in movies like “Under the Tuscan Sun” giving Limoncello a romantic feel. We wanted to give the citrusy cocktail an artsy vibe.
We asked attendees to wear some shade of yellow and meet us at The Martin Gallery. The Broad Street showroom houses large metal sculptures as well as intricate paintings. The classic cocktails were comprised of Limoncello di Capri, Tiziano Prosecco and club soda – garnished with a lemon slice. Salute.
Our friends at Carolima’s Lowcountry Kitchen provided us with pimento cheese crostinis topped with okra slices.
Chef Sameka Jenkins, known for her buttery Charleston Chewies, created a lemon infused “blondie” type treat for guests. So good!
Celebrate Italy
Italian spirits range from herbal bitter liqueurs to fragrant aromatized wines. Our event series finale allowed us to share more from the Italian Spirits spectrum.
We featured some of the lesser known Italian Liqueurs like Molanari, an anise flavor liqueur and Fragoli, a wild strawberry liqueur. We mixed these foreign spirits with familiar ingredients to encourage guests to try something new.
The most popular cocktail of the evening was called, “Brown Bunny”. This cocktail was a combination of Nocello (a walnut flavored liqueur), Arabica Coffee flavored soda and lime juice.
Guests Sipped Italiana while enjoying a violin performance from local artist, Tyree McDowell. 
Big thanks to Redux Art Center, our gracious host, for being an open and inviting venue which allowed our attendees to socialize and appreciate the creations from local artists.
Stay on the lookout for more cultural cocktail events from us soon!
http://spoletousa.org http://meyervogl.com/ http://www.martingallerycharleston.com/ http://reduxstudios.org/ http://www.carolimas.com www.aperol.com www.ice.it www.totalbeveragesolution.com http://www.molinari.it Photos by Julia Sanders
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