Every year as the sun starts to shine, one cocktail rises above the rest to become the show-off drink of the season. After the recent success of the Paloma, negroni sbagliato, and the Hugo spritz, this year's bet is on the sgroppino.
The Rise of the Sgroppino
The sgroppino is following in the footsteps of the Aperol spritz and Hugo spritz to become the Italian cocktail of the summer. There was a time when asking for a Hugo spritz at most humble bars in the UK would result in incredulous looks. But by 2025, the elderflower liquor cocktail was available everywhere from Claridge's hotel to Wetherspoons. Soon, the same will be true for the next Venetian cocktail set for mass popularisation: the sgroppino.
It is slowly being served up and down the country in bars and more low-key boozers. Early adopters include Swift in London's Borough and Soho, Butter Bird in Manchester, The Watering Can in Liverpool, and Selfridges with their "just add prosecco" sorbets. Of course, Ottolenghi and Nigella Lawson have been on the case for years, offering their own takes on the Venetian classic back in 2023. "Its celestial texture is not quite solid, not quite liquid, but like a hazy dream of delight," Lawson enthused online last May.
What Is a Sgroppino?
For the uninitiated, the sgroppino is a cocktail made with lemon sorbet, prosecco, and vodka. Although its exact origin remains unknown, the drink traces back to 16th-century Italy. Some say Venetian aristocrats drank it as a palate cleanser between courses at lavish banquets. The name comes from the Venetian dialect word sgropìn or desgropante, which translates loosely to "untie the knot," nodding to the cocktail's ability to settle a stomach after a heavy meal.
An alternative story suggests that in the 1970s, two brothers running a hotel in Veneto accidentally ordered too much vodka and tried to deal with their stock mistake creatively. They mixed it into vodka and lemon juice, which was too sour, before landing on sorbet. Thus, the sgroppino was allegedly born. Either way, move over frozen margarita—there's another iced drink ready to take over for this year's scorching hot summer.
Summertime Sgroppino Recipe
By Sal e Pepe's head of beverages, Pietro Collina
Ingredients
- 100 grams of lemon sorbet
- 15 ml Grey Goose vodka
- 7.5 ml simple syrup
- 7.5 ml malic solution
- 7.5 ml crème de apricot
- Top with 30 ml prosecco
- One small sprig of mint
Directions
- Place one scoop of lemon sorbet into a deep coupe and garnish with one small mint sprig.
- Combine the vodka, syrup, malic solution, and crème de apricot and pour into the glass.
- Serve with a spoon and top up the glass with prosecco tableside for some added flair.
- Mix the sorbet into the alcohol or enjoy separately in the sunshine.
