Cocktail bar: The Hugo

Cocktail bar: The Hugo (Photo: iStock)

Also referred to as the ‘Hugo Spritz’, the delicious Hugo Cocktail originated from Northern Italy in the early 2000s. It was invented in 2005 by bartender Roland Gruber at the San Zeno Bar in Naturns, a town in the Alpine region of South Tyrol.

Gruber created the Hugo as a refreshing, less bitter alternative to the popular Aperol Spritz. The original recipe featured lemon balm syrup, though it was soon replaced by the more common elderflower syrup or liqueur. The light, floral cocktail quickly became a favourite and spread rapidly across German-speaking Europe, including Austria and Germany.