05/19/2026
My Cocktail Submission for the 2026 The Art of Italicus Aperitivo Challenge
‘Love Is In The Air’
ITALICUS ROSOLIO DI BERGAMOTTO
Il TRAMONTO LIMONCELLO LIQUEUR
PORTLAND BITTERS PROJECT ROSE BITTERS
FEVER TREE MEDITERRANEAN TONIC
YUZU ROSE AIR
FOOD PAIRING: LEMON WAFER COOKIES
Inspired by The Birth of Venus, a painting by Italian artist Sandro Botticelli. It shows the goddess Venus arriving at the shore after her birth. This cocktail captures the elegance, softness, and coastal romance of this masterpiece through bright Mediterranean flavors and delicate floral aromatics. This cocktail was designed as a liquid interpretation of the painting itself, built with Italicus Bergamot Liqueur, limoncello, Mediterranean tonic, rose bitters, and finished with a silky yuzu rose air. Venus, also know as the Goddess of Love, inspired the name of this cocktail.
This cocktail also serves as a reimagination of the classic spritz, offering a fresh and innovative take on this iconic aperitivo style. Aperitivo style cocktails can sometimes feel too spirit forward, so rather than relying on traditional bitterness alone, this drink layers bergamot, yuzu, and rose to create a softer, more aromatic expression.
Completed with a lemon wafer cookie pairing, which enhances the cocktail’s creamy citrus notes and delicate floral finish. It gives a crisp, buttery texture and sweet lemon notes to echo the bergamot and limoncello. Together, the cocktail and pairing puts you in a world of soft Mediterranean air, sea breeze, florals, and timeless Italian beauty.
