CLASSIC ITALIAN COCKTAILS
Italy’s rich culinary tapestry and vibrant aperitivo culture has led to the creation of cocktails with a timeless allure.
Explore and celebrate Italy’s most famous and delicious cocktails, and get inspired by the flavours, aromas, and spirit of aperitivo with our easy Italian cocktail recipes.
Famous Italian Cocktails
Handpicked by our MARTINI cocktail experts, here are our favourite classic Italian cocktail recipes. Whether you’re looking for inspiration for your next trip to Italy, or wanting to drink the Italian way at home, these cocktails capture the essence of aperitivo and are best enjoyed with friends, family and classic Italian dishes.
Make your own MARTINI Negroni
The MARTINI Riserva Speciale Rubino and Riserva Speciale Bitter come together perfectly to deliver the Master Blenders ultimate Negroni cocktail. A perfect balance of sweetness, bitterness and distinctive botanicals with MARTINI’s vibrant vermouth and complex bitters.
Salty and fatty dishes are the perfect pairing for a Negroni cocktail, softening the intense aromatic bitterness with every sip. The complex flavours of cured meat or the clean, cool simplicity of beef tartare or burrata pair fabulously with this bright and tasteful Negroni.
MARTINI Negroni
The perfect aperitivo
Perfectly paired by the MARTINI Master Blender and Master Herbalist, the Riserva Speciale Bitter and Riserva Speciale Rubino combine with gin to make the MARTINI Negroni cocktail. The aim? To create the best-tasting Negroni in the world.
THE 3·2·1 SERVE
3
PARTS
MARTINI
PROSECCO
2
PARTS
MARTINI
BIANCO
1
PARTS
SODA
WATER
INGREDIENTS
- 30 ml
- MARTINI® Riserva Speciale Rubino
- 30 ml
- MARTINI® Riserva Speciale Bitter
- 30 ml
- BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® Gin
- Orange Wedge to garnish
METHOD
- Fill a tumbler with ice cubes.
- Pour the ingredients in and stir gently for dilution.
- Add the orange wedge to garnish.
Make your own Martini Americano
The Americano is a drink with mythical origins. The mentions of a cocktail made with vermouth, bitter, and soda date back to the 1880s, but the first official recipe for an “Americano” appeared only a few decades later. In Italy, the cocktail is documented in a recipe book from 1920.
Thanks to its extensive historical archives, MARTINI has begun to shed light on the mysterious story of this cocktail, one that intertwines with the history of an aperitif called “Americano,” crafted by the company since 1875. By 1906, Martini & Rossi was producing a “Vermouth with Bitter Americano,” recommended to be enjoyed with soda water and a twist of lemon. From the 1930s onward, the Americano cocktail became a fixture in cocktail books and MARTINI advertisements, often served into an highball glass.
MARTINI Rosso Americano
The perfect aperitivo
The light and sparkling character of this cocktail enhances the complex aromatics of MARTINI Bitter and Rosso resulting in this classic bittersweet long and refreshing aperitivo drink.
THE 3·2·1 SERVE
3
PARTS
MARTINI
PROSECCO
2
PARTS
MARTINI
BIANCO
1
PARTS
SODA
WATER
INGREDIENTS
- 35 ml
- MARTINI Rosso
- 35 ml
- MARTINI Bitter
- 70 ml
- Soda
- Orange Slice to garnish
METHOD
- Add all ingredients to a tumbler with ice.
- Stir gently.
- Garnish and enjoy.
Make your own MARTINI Manhattan
The Manhattan cocktail is complex and warming with a delicate touch of sweetness, for those that enjoy multiple layers to their cocktail experience. Served in a classic Martini cocktail glass, this drink exudes elegance with every sip.
The bitter-sweet power of a Manhattan cocktail makes it the perfect pairing to the sweet flavours of fig, creamy goat cheeses, and crispy rucola with flatbread.
MARTINI Manhattan
The perfect aperitivo
A complex and warming drink with a touch of sweetness, for those that enjoy multiple layers to their cocktail experience.
THE 3·2·1 SERVE
3
PARTS
MARTINI
PROSECCO
2
PARTS
MARTINI
BIANCO
1
PARTS
SODA
WATER
INGREDIENTS
- 60 ml
- Rye Whiskey
- 30 ml
- MARTINI Riserva Speciale Rubino
- 2.5 ml
- Maraschino Liquer
- dash of Angostura Bitters
- Marachino Cherry to garnish
METHOD
- Fill a mixing glass with ice cubes.
- Pour in the ingredients and stir for 20 seconds.
- Strain into a Martini cocktail glass and garnish.
What are the traditional Italian pre-dinner drinks?
The concept of aperitivo is built into Italian culture and community. It’s a time where friends and family can gather to socialise and enjoy light drinks and snacks before dinner. Traditionally, these drinks are simple spritz cocktails, easy to make and refreshing to drink after a long day.
In a country where every meal is a celebration of flavour, MARTINI has been an essential companion to the Italian aperitivo since its founding in 1863. Read more about MARTINI’s Italian story.
To learn more about aperitivo cocktails and culture, check out our guide to aperitivo.
