You might have heard the word "Aperitivo" or "Apéritif" float around in your past visits to restaurants, and chances are you might even have ordered a crimson Campari or Aperol based drink a couple of times.

But what does it mean? Well, to the Italians aperitivo is more than just a drink; it's a way of life. Rooted in the Latin word "aperire," meaning "to open," this pre-dinner ritual involves enjoying a low-alcohol beverage and light bites to stimulate the appetite.  

Traditionally centered around bitter, fortified wines like vermouth, the concept has evolved to encompass a wider range of drinks and snacks. Today, Aperitivo hour is a time to unwind, socialize, and prepare your stomach for the final round of culinary delights of the day.

But there sure are a whole lot of liqeurs out there. Fear not! We'll help you out in this quick little essential aperitivo liqueur guide!

Campari

Let's start off with something familiar: The scarlet hues of what might very well be the most popular of all these aperitifs. 

Campari was invented in 1860 by one Gaspare Campari in Novara Italy. It's signature ruby color is traditionally derived from carmine dye, which was in turn obtained from crushed cochineal insects. The dye, however, ceased being used from 2006 by the Campari group (so you need not fear any bugs in that drink of yours).

Although it can be drunk on its own, mixed with juices or soda water, Campari is the quintessential cocktail ingredient. Classics like the negroni, Americano and boulevardier all use Campari in their original recipes.

Renowned for its bittersweet flavor, it is also known to have hints of herbal, citrus and spicy undertones.

Luxardo Maraschino

Some of you might know this liqueur from the jars of candied cherries that are used for cocktail garnishes all around the world. Surprise! Girolamo Luxardo is known for more than just cherries.

That's not to say their products are all that far distanced from each other. First, Luxardo's marasca cherries are harvested and put in an alcoholic infusion in larch-wood vats together with some leaves and branches of the same trees, then left alone for up to three years.

When ready, both the liquid and the solid parts are distilled in traditional copper pot stills, separating the "heart" from "heads" and "tails". For the uninitiated, the heads and tails are rich in volatile compounds and discarded due to their harsher flavors. Now, the hearts are the prized middle section that contains the most of the desirable flavors and aromas that define the spirit.

These "hearts" are then matured in ash-wood vats. Finally, simple syrup is added to lower the ABV and transform the alcoholic distillate into a liqueur.

It's characterized by its signature bright cherry notes, balanced with a subtle almond bitterness, hints of dark chocolate, vanilla and orange marmalade. Luxardo Maraschino is also a cornerstone in the world of classic cocktails, lending its distinctive character to iconic drinks like the Aviation and the Manhattan.

Fun fact: The bottle's wrapping of hand-plaited straw is a throwback the early days where straw was placed between bottles in order to prevent damage during transportation.

Chartreuse

Ah, the fabled Chartreuse. Coming in both green and yellow varieties, with the latter being a "lighter" version of the original green Chartreuse.

Originating in the French Alps, the story goes that a marshal of artillery called François Hannibal d'Estrées, presented the Carthusian monks with an alchemical manuscript that contained a recipe for an "elixir of long life" in 1605. The "elixir" was then crafted by Carthusian monks using a secret recipe said to contain over 130 different herbs and plants.

The result is a beguiling blend of sweet, bitter, and herbal notes, using a recipe that has lasted through to this day.

With the dawn of the 2000s, Chartreuse increased in international popularity during the craft cocktail movement, with drinks like the Last Word relying heavily on the liqueur. 

A few more years, however, would see Chartreuse becoming a bit of a unicorn. This occurrence was (in a way), an act of god. You see, in 2019 the Carthusian monks decided to limit Chartreuse production to 1.6 million bottles per year. They had done so hoping to reduce the environmental impacts of its production, and also to return to their traditional focus on solitude and prayer.

The result? Chartreuse has become a holy grail to bartenders (particularly mixologists) around the world, with bottles being snapped up the instant they appear on shelves.

Lillet 

The original Kina Lillet.

"Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon-peel."

Sound familiar? Yep! It's international superspy James Bond's signature Kina Lillet Martini, the Vesper. Arguably, this drink is one that catapulted Lillet into international fame in the modern age.

The company was founded in 1872 by brothers Paul and Raymond Lillet. In the 18th century, there was a surge of fear of illness as a consequence of the discoveries made by Louis Pasteur. Wine was touted as "the most hygienic of all beverages", and tonic wines in particular were in high demand.

The original recipe was a liqueur made with white wine and mixed with fruit liqueurs. More importantly, the liqueur was flavored with quinine, made from the bark of the cinchona tree. Also called "Kina-Kina", that's where the "Kina" in its name is derived from.

The revamped Lillet Blanc.

The Lillet Blanc replaced the original Kina Lillet in 1986, which was a sweeter variant of the original version. 

The primary reason for the reformulation was a significant reduction in the quinine content. Originally, Kina Lillet had a more pronounced bitter taste due to its higher quinine level, which was a defining characteristic of the aperitif. However, as tastes shifted towards sweeter and less bitter drinks, Lillet decided to reduce the quinine content to create a more palatable product. Sustainability issues were also taken into account.

Noilly Prat

Noilly Prat is a legendary French vermouth, synonymous with the classic dry Martini. Hailing from Marseillan, the brand has been crafting its signature aperitif since the early 19th century.

In 1813, founder Joseph Noilly designed a process that made France's first vermouth. The method was inspired from something that naturally occured: Wine transported long distances in barrels and exposed to the weather became darker in colour and fuller-flavoured.

In 1855, his son Louis Noilly and son-in-law Claudius Prat set up the company that became Noilly Prat, moving the business to Marseillan where it remains to this day. 

Noilly Prat prides itself in using 20 different herbs and spices to make its Original Dry. Some herbs and spices known to the public are, Chamomile, Moroccan Coriander, Bitter Oranges and Elderflower.

Italicus

A relatively young addition to the world of Aperitvo Liqueurs, this Liqueur was invented by Italian bartender Giuseppe Gallo in 2016 after learning about rosolios.

The recipe for his liqueur was based on an old family recipe, using Calabrian bergamot and Sicilian citrons, along with some Italian flower varieties that include lavender, yellow roses, lemon balm and gentian.

It is said to have a prominent, zesty bergamot flavor that's balanced by subtle sweetness and a touch of floral notes. There are also notes of grass and some herbal bitterness.

Martini Vermouth

The Martini line of aperitivos might very well be the poster child of aperitivos around the globe. Used in the titular Martini as well as a plethora of other cocktails, it's safe to say the cocktail industry would be taken out at the knees if this aperitivo were to one day disappear off the face of the earth.

Clemente Michel, Carlo Re, Carlo Agnelli and Eligio Baudino founded the company in 1847, and their vermouth was in shelves internationally just 30 years after its creation.

Of the many Martini aperitivos, the more popular ones are the Martini Bianco, Extra Dry and Rosso. After a merger in 1992 with Bacardi, it was said that that Martini was the world's fourth most powerful spirits brand in 2006.

Often synonymous with dry, Bianco and Rosso vermouth, it is characterised by its dry, herbaceous, and slightly bitter profile with a (more often than not) light, floral, and almost medicinal taste.

Aperol

One of the more well-known aperitivo's on this list, most of you dear readers will be familiar with Aperol and it's signature orange color. At the risk of being a little on the nose, its name actually comes from the French apero, a native slang for 'apéritif'!

Aperol was originally created in 1919 by Luigi and Silvio Barbieri, but oddly enough, did not gain much international acclaim until post WW2. It was first produced by the Padua (Italian) based Barbieri company, but is now produced by the Campari Group. 

You would not be remiss to have confused Aperol for Campari some time in the past, but there's a few differences; for one, Aperol has half the ABV of Campari at only 11 per cent.

Most popularly used in the Aperol Spritz, Aperol has made with ingredients that include gentian, rhubarb and cinchona. 

Cocchi

Developed by French pastry chef Giulio Cocchi in 1891, Cocchi Americano is a type of Americano (an aromatised wine containing cinchona bark). 

That year, he bagan actively distilling, specialising in a range of special aromatised wine that found great acclaim worldwide. Since 1978, Giulio Cocchi became owned and operated by the wine producing Bava Family, following the original recipes of founder Giulio Cocchi.

Popular in cocktails such as the Corpse Reviver No. 2, Cocchi Americano also gained popularity from  its use in the aforementioned Vesper as a substitute for the now-unavailable Kina Lillet.

Averna

This traditional drink of Sicily, Amaro Averna is an Italian amaro liqueur produced in Caltanisetta, Italy. 

Named after its inventor Salvatore Averna, his recipe was created in 1868 based on a recipe gifted to him.

The story goes that Salvatore was an extremely active member of the community and in particular was a benefactor of the Abbey of the Holy Spirit. The monks in the abbey had been producing an "elixir" of herbs that although "bitter", was thought to have tonic and therapeutic properties. It was this very recipe that was gifted to Salvatore by a Prior of the Abbey.

The process to make Averna includes ingredients such as herbs, roots and citrus rinds. Pomegranates and essential oils from citrus fruits are immersed in alcohol after maceration, after which caramel is added before the mixture is reduced to drinking strength and bottled.

Fernet Branca

Also known as a bartender's handshake, Fernet-Branca was formulated in Milan, Italy, in 1845. The creator? Self-taught herbalist, Bernardino Branca, who with his sons set up a business to sell his drink. A style of amaro, the drink was marketed as a tonic-like one with invigorating properties.

Oddly enough, it was also touted to be a cure for worms, fever, cholera and menstrual pain. Such claims remain unsubstantiated to this day.

However, its medicinal status aided in its popularity worldwide, especially in America in the early 1900s during Prohibition. The recipe has not changed since 1845.

Made from 27 herbs and other ingredients, although the full recipe has never been disclosed. From Fernet's official website, it is said to at least include such ingredients as "rhubarb from China, gentian from France, galanga from India", to name a few.

Bruto Americano

America's answer to the Campari, The Bruto Americano might be a lesser heard of aperitivo to the average drinker. 

The man responsible for this was Northern Californian master distiller Lance Winters, who had wanted to make an apertif for his company's (St. George Spirits) lineup.

The result? A drink made with balsam fir, local buckthorn bark, gentian root and Californian Seville oranges. It's ruby red color is also derived from cochineal, as is the norm for traditional Italian aperitifs.

The name, when translated, means "Dirty American" in Italian, which is a cheeky reference to how the drink is an American "copy" of the real thing.

Cinzano

Like the Martini line of vermouths, Cinzano also has all three selections; The Extra Dry, The Rosso and The Bianco.  Founded in 1757, the vermouths were birthed in the Turin herbal shop of two brothers, Giovanni Giacomo and Carlo Stefano Cinzano.

Using a whopping 35 ingredients that included marjoram, thyme, and yarrow, the drink was well received by the upper class in Turin, and then wider Venice.

A sibling of sorts to the Martini vermouths in the aperitif and cocktail worlds, the two brands are often used interchangeably in cocktails that call for it, such as the Manhattan.

Benedictine

In 1863, wine merchant Alexandre Le Grand developed a recipe for a herbal liqueur (with the help of a local chemist) from old medicinal recipes.

To market this liqueur, Alexandre was a little bit cheeky, fabricating a story that the drink had been developed by Norman monks at the Benedictine Abbey of Fécamp, with production ceasing only after the French Revolution destroyed the Abbey.

The name remains a callback to this embellished story. The D.O.M on the label  stands for on the label, for "Deo Optimo Maximo", translated to "To God, most good, most great", which was also how monks of the Benedictine Order began most documents.

The recipe of Bénédictine is a secret that is beyond closely guarded, with allegedly only three people knowing it at any time. Of the 27 guarded herbs and spices, only 21 are publicly known.

Popularly used in cocktails such as The Vieux Carré and The Monte Carlo, expect a taste reminiscent of herbaceous honey, spices, and a subtle hint of citrus.

Lok Bing Hong A budding journalist that loves experiencing new things and telling people's stories. I have 30 seconds of coherence a day. I do not decide when they come. They are not consecutive.