Hugo Spritz: Recipe, Ratio, and Variations

What it tastes like

Cold wine, a flower shop, and lime peel. A good Hugo is not a sweet cordial with bubbles on top. If the elderflower is the loudest thing in the glass, the pour was too big or the prosecco was warm.

People reach for it when the bitter orange spritz has become the only aperitivo in the room. Hugo is the other classic: alpine, green, and lighter.

The ratio

The Easy Spritz house glass is short and floral: 60 ml prosecco, 30 ml elderflower cordial, 10 ml soda. The tall alpine glass flips the emphasis: about 120 ml prosecco, 20 ml syrup, 30 ml soda. Both are a Hugo. They are for different moods.

Start with the house recipe if you want the drink people mean when they ask for a Hugo at a bar. Use the tall Hugo when you want a second glass that still tastes like wine.

Syrup, cordial, or liqueur

Elderflower syrup and cordial are the lighter path, and they are what you use for a virgin Hugo. Elderflower liqueur is stronger and sweeter. Drop that pour to about 20 ml. A producer spritz that skips the mint and uses extra soda is a cousin, written up here as the elderflower spritz, not as a Hugo.

The first Hugo glasses, in South Tyrol in the mid-2000s, used lemon balm syrup. Elderflower replaced it because it was easier to buy. The lemon balm Hugo is still worth making if you can find the syrup.

Garnish and prosecco

Clap the mint. Do not muddle it. Lime is the usual citrus. Lemon fits the taller, wine-forward pour. Cucumber makes a Garden Hugo.

Brut prosecco is the safe bottle. Extra Dry is a little softer, despite the name. Sweet sparkling wine will make any Hugo cloying. The prosecco guide is the longer version of that choice.

Questions people ask