what i drink when i'm not drinking #4: italian bitter soda

a non-alcoholic bitter beverage for my best bitter buds

As you may have guessed when I was yapping on about non-alcoholic negronis, I love bitter beverages. The bitterer the better(er)! If you’re a bitter bud, may I present to you… the bitter Italian soda! I hope you two have already had the pleasure, but if not then welcome. It’s a sip worth savoring!

When I was living in Brooklyn a lifetime ago¹, I was shopping at my local Italian grocer (Caputo’s) and a cute red bottle on a bottom shelf caught my eye while in line. That was my first introduction to the non-alcoholic aperitif soda, Sanbittèr Red by San Pellegrino, and my world was deliciously rocked. I took it home, poured it over ice with a splash of seltzer on top, and called it a day. And a damn fine drink discovery for me, too, as I was a few months into my “drinking break” and had only just ventured more curiously into non-alcoholic beverage land.

Recently I was reminded about that precious non-alcoholic aperitif soda and wanted to sample a different one, so I set out on that journey and got my hands on some Stappi Red Bitter. Let me just stop (sorry) you right there and say: I prefer Stappi to Sanbittèr! They are both delicious and I would be delighted if presented with either, but I found Stappi to be slightly less sweet (which means it tasted more bitter, too) and provided my mouth with a more rewarding effervescent experience. I’m a bitter buddy and also a bubble buddy, baby.

Interested in a little sweeter, and a little less bitter? Go for the Sanbittèr. I have yet to try any other Italian bitter sodas but would love to. Next on my sip list is Crodino. Side note: it appears that Crodino has done a rebrand to really lean in to the non-alcoholic spritz of it all, and I love that for me.

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stappi red bitter: three ways

You can sub Stappi Red (or Sanbittèr, for that matter) in place of Campari or Aperol in your cocktails if you’re trying to bring the alcohol-level down, or you can wild out in non-alcoholic beverage land with me. Here are three non-alcoholic ways to bitter it up, buttercup.

Simple serve: Open bottle. Pour over ice. Add a splash of seltzer water, depending on how diluted you’d like your bitter soda beverage. Garnish with lemon, lime, or grapefruit (peel or wedge, choose your own adventure!). Simple side quest: I have been trying out different flavored seltzers with this. Ginger lime mule by Polar has been one of my favorites so far.

Elevated serve: Of course I had to make a Spaghett (beer, Aperol, and lemon juice). Traditionally served in a Miller High Life bottle (cute!), I built mine over ice one fine evening when I was sampling the Sunbeam Pilsner from Go Brewing². Here’s what I did: threw some ice cubes in a glass, filled my glass about 75% full, and topped it off with the Stappi Red. A squeeze of lemon on top was the perfect, acidic touch. You don’t have to do All That though, you can absolutely make it easier, peasier, and lemon squeezier by simply, in true Spaghett fashion, cracking open your favorite beer, taking a good sip or two, and splashing the Stappi directly in the can. Splash some lemon juice in there too if you’ve got it.

Signature serve: You saw it coming from a mile away, and that’s because you know me so well: a non-alcoholic negroni riff. I made a Cardinale (a negroni with dry vermouth instead of sweet vermouth). The version I ended up preferring after some time in the test kitchen did not have adjusted proportions, as is often the case with a Cardinale. Instead of Campari, we have ourselves an ounce of the Stappi Red Bitter Aperitif. Really quite delightful, will be sipping again here shortly.

non-alcoholic cardinale

1 oz. Monday Zero Alcohol Gin

1 oz. Roots Divino Aperitif Bianco

1 oz. Stappi Red Bitter Aperitif

Add ingredients to a mixing glass or cocktail shaker. Stir until chilled and strain into glassware of your choice, over ice or straight up. Garnish with an orange peel.

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Wait, wait, before you go! A few other things I wanted to mention:

📍 Local (Bellingham, Washington): Everyone please wish Bloomhaven Bottle Shop a very happy first birthday! They will be celebrating their one year anniversary with a very sick sounding party this Friday, September 26th! We’re talking tarot readings, tattoos, and more. I am hoping that I can make it because they are the best around and so, so worth supporting. Every time I am in there I am so stoked to eavesdrop (oops) on people talking about the positive impact the shop has had on their lives and the community; that’s very much how I feel, too. You can find more info on their Instagram or at the Eventbrite here!

🌐 On the world wide web: Have you subscribed to The Modern Substitute yet? I can’t remember how I stumbled across this newsletter originally but I am very pleased that I did! A great source of non-alcoholic beverage information and one that I highly recommend.

🌻 AMA! Or throw me a recommendation: the joy juice anonymous tip line is open (and DMs are open, too).

Thanks for reading! A non-alcoholic cheers to you.

1. It was 2020 which we can all agree felt like two to three lifetimes ago, right?

2. Picked this up at Bloomhaven in Fairhaven (Bellingham, WA). It is an extremely solid non-alcoholic beer and I would definitely buy it again.