Hugo Spritz

This recipe for a Hugo spritz is crisp and clean, full of bubbly prosecco with a hint of mint and elderflower.

Ingredients

Elderflower Liquor

Elderflower liquor has a bit of floral essence (anecdotally – it tastes less florally than the name might suggest, and it’s lighter in flavor than rose or lavender drinks from coffee and boba shops), and it’s super sweet. A little goes a long ways here, so definitely start with what’s listed in the recipe and add more incrementally if you find that your drink needs more.

I’ve used St Germain here, since it was the easiest for me to find (and even then, this is something you need to get either online or at a liquor store, rather than a grocery store). Any other brand of elderflower liquor, or even homemade, is totally fine to use!

Prosecco

Your favorite dry prosecco is preferred here, since you can always doctor up the beverage with some sweetener. And if you don’t have a go to prosecco (don’t worry, I fall into this category too), go consult an expert at your local liquor store.

How to Make

Start by picking out your serving glass. Ideally it's something sturdy and stemless so that you can minimize dishes, though you can always muddle the mint in a mixing cup and transfer it into a wine glass.

Then, muddle some fresh mint with a bit of sugar and salt until you start to smell the mint.

Muddling is a method used to help extract the oils from flavorings in cocktails (think herbs and citrus zest). Bartenders have special muddlers to smush and gently press these ingredients, though I find that the handle of a wide wooden spoon works well in a home kitchen.

Add a generous helping of ice, then add the prosecco, elderflower liquor, and sparkling water. Give everything a stir.

Taste your drink before passing go. I prefer my drinks on the lighter side and the proportions here reflect that, so add more prosecco (or see some ideas at the bottom of this post!) for something stronger.

Slap a sprig of mint against the inside of your wrist until the mint is fragrant, then use it as a garnish for your cocktail and sip away!

Tips

• Adjust the sweetness to taste. Based on the prosecco and elderflower liquor that you use, you may need to dilute the cocktail with more ice/sparkling water, or add more sugar.
• Don’t forget the salt! I add salt to all my beverages whether they’re alcoholic, like this soju lemonade, or non-alcoholic, like this strawberry yogurt drink. Similar to in cooking, the salt brings out the flavors in whatever you’re making.
• Feel free to make a big batch of this! Not ideal if you’re going to leave it on a table for hours and let people serve themselves, but it would definitely work if you’re planning on handing everyone a glass when they walk in.

Variations

Mint

Maybe you’re not sold on the idea of all this mint in your spritz; no worries, you can skip the muddling step. Since the sugar won’t mix and mingle with the oils from the mint, dissolve the sugar in ½ tablespoon hot water to make sure it’s not gritty in the final beverage.

Aperol

Hugo spritzes are much more sweet and mild than Aperol spritzes (this is a good thing, in my opinion). If you want to straddle the line between the two a little more, you could add a shot of Aperol into this drink.

And bonus - you’d get that lovely orange hue seeping into the otherwise pale, barely yellow liquid.

Gin

Should you want more of a punch in your drink, you could add a shot of gin to the spritz.

I’d probably add a little more elderflower liquor and sparkling water to balance things out, though that might be my lightweight side speaking up (again).

Fruit

This definitely is more of a crisp drink rather than a fruity one, but you can modify if you’re looking for something more on the sweeter side.

Some smashed berries, a splash of fruit juice, or a few slices of orange or grapefruit would all be delicious in this spritz.

4 from 1 vote

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Hugo Spritz

Prep Time

5 mins

Total Time

5 mins

 

This light and refreshing cocktail has a base of dry prosecco, flavored with a bit of mint and elderflower liquor.

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: alcohol, dairy-free, egg-free, elderflower liquor, gluten-free, grain-free, mint, no-bake, no-cook, nut-free, prosecco, sparkling water, vegan, vegetarian, wine

Servings: 1 person

Calories: 201 kcal

Ingredients

• 5 mint leaves plus 1 sprig for garnish
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1 pinch salt
• ice
• ½ cup Prosecco
• 1 ounce elderflower liquor
• ⅓ cup sparkling water

Instructions

1. In a stemless, sturdy glass, muddle the mint leaves, sugar and salt until fragrant. Add the elderflower liquor, prosecco, sparkling water and a big scoop of ice.
2. Mix, then taste and adjust as needed. Smack the sprig of mint against the inside of your wrist until the mint is fragrant, then add as a garnish to the drink and serve!

Recipe Notes

This drink is light on the alcohol, so feel free to add more prosecco, Aperol, gin, or another spirit if you’d like.