Fiorente: the elderberry liqueur of Hugo Spritz

Fiorente, an Italian elderberry liqueur with floral, fresh and lemony accents that revisits the aperitif with a lighter and more delicate interpretation of the Hugo Spritz.

Fiorente is an Italian elderflower liqueur designed around one of the freshest cocktails of the Italian aperitivo: the Hugo Spritz. Distilled in Piedmont by the Francoli family house, it combines elderflower, mint and citrus fruits in a 20% vol recipe.

Born in the early 2000s in South Tyrol, Hugo Spritz has gradually established itself in Italian mixology. More floral and less bitter than the traditional Spritz, it is based on a particularly refreshing trio: elderflower, mint and citrus fruits. Fiorente offers an interpretation designed specifically for this cocktail.

An elderberry liqueur made in Piedmont

Produced since 2014 by Gruppo Fratelli Francoli, a family house founded in 1875, Fiorente is distilled in Ghemme, in Piedmont, in the north of Italy. Its name, which means “flourishing” in Italian, refers to Flora, Roman goddess of flowers and spring.

Its recipe begins with harvested and then dried elderflowers, to which are added spearmint, Mentha Piperita di Pancalieria local variety of peppermint, as well as a distillate of lemon peel and lemon and lime juices. The Francoli house specifies that the elderflowers are harvested in the wild at the foot of the Alps.

The distillery separates the infusions in particular: dried elderflowers are infused in alcohol then macerated, while fresh mint and lemon peels are infused separately in order to extract their aromas.

An approach attentive to its environment

Elderberry picking is the subject of a reasoned approach: some of the flowers are deliberately left on the shrubs in order to allow them to fruit and preserve local biodiversity. Francoli also uses the grape stems from its production by transforming them into biomass intended to power its energy installations.

The official Fiorente website also presents the liqueur as produced at the Francoli distillery, in an effort to reduce its environmental impact.

Fiorente: a floral, fresh and lemony profile

In the glass, Fiorente displays a light gold color. The nose opens with floral elderberry, awakened by fresh lemon and a touch of mint. On the palate, the sweetness of elderberry is enriched with nuances of lychee and honey, before rediscovering the freshness of lemon and mint. The finish extends the elderflowers with a sensation of fresh grass and a slight lemony acidity.

With 20% vol., Fiorente is in the register of light liqueurs intended in particular for mixology. The brand also lists a lower sugar content than many elderflower liqueurs.

This aromatic freshness naturally makes it an aperitivo base, but also an interesting ingredient to add a floral touch to other cocktails. Fiorente can thus be used as a base or as an aromatic element in more complex creations.

The Fiorente Hugo Spritz

To find the signature of the house, the recipe is particularly simple:

6 cl of Prosecco Riccadonna
4 cl of Fiorente
6 cl of sparkling water
a zest of lemon
ice cubes

Fill the glass with ice cubes, pour in the Prosecco, the elderflower liqueur then the sparkling water. Finish with a lemon zest.

The official Fiorente website offers a very similar variation, with 4 cl of Fiorente, 6 cl of Prosecco, 6 cl of sparkling water, lime and a few mint leaves.

To remember: the Hugo Spritz here plays on the contrast between the floral of elderberry, the herbaceous freshness of mint and the liveliness of citrus fruits. A profile ideal for a summer aperitif, fresh and not marked by bitterness.

Fiorente, what to serve it with?

Its aromatic palette naturally calls for fresh and light aperitifs: Italian antipasti, grilled vegetables, marinated fish, ceviches, summer salads or citrus preparations can find an echo in its floral and lemony profile.

More broadly, liqueur can bring a floral dimension to cocktails made with sparkling wine, sparkling water or citrus fruits. Francoli thus presents it as a mixology ingredient versatile enough to enter cocktails beyond just the Hugo Spritz.

Fiorente: floral Italy in a glass

With its wild elderflowers, mint and citrus fruits, Fiorente is part of a trend in Italian aperitivo where freshness and floral notes take precedence over bitterness. Developed in Piedmont by a family house with more than 150 years of know-how, it finds its most obvious expression in the Hugo Spritz.