From flavours to white expressions, innovation is reshaping Italy’s bitters category as producers look beyond the classics.

The Negroni is the chief ambassador for Italian bitters but its own success, coupled with the ever popular Spritz movement, has led to innovations in style, serve and flavour for a traditional category.

For Luca Missaglia, managing partner of Santoni L’Aperitivo, the global demand for Italian aperitivo culture is stronger than ever. “The Italian aperitivo category is experiencing strong global momentum, driven by consumers embracing aperitivo as a social ritual centred around quality, hospitality and experience.

“We are seeing a clear move towards premiumisation, with consumers looking beyond traditional brands and searching for products with authentic provenance, craftsmanship and distinctive flavour profiles.”

Newer brands are experimenting with different botanical combinations and flavour-led expressions to offer more flexibility behind the bar. For example, Santoni has centred its proposition around rhubarb, a profile Missaglia believes offers a refreshed interpretation of the category without losing its Italian roots.

“A key point of differentiation is our liquid: a premium Italian aperitivo based on a unique rhubarb liqueur profile, combining freshness, complexity and balance. This gives bartenders a versatile product that works beautifully both in classic aperitivo serves and in modern cocktail creations,” Missaglia adds. “Five years ago, the category was largely driven by a few iconic brands. Today, consumers are much more engaged with the wider aperitivo culture and are looking for discovery, quality and new flavour experiences.”

As a result, Missaglia believes the category has become more dynamic, “creating space for brands that combine heritage, innovation and a strong identity”.

BEYOND THE RED 

While rhubarb root remains crucial to the identity of a large portion of Italian bitters in both colour and flavour, serving as the backbone of classic cocktails such as the Negroni and Americano, producers believe bartenders are increasingly embracing colourless alternatives that deliver bitterness without altering the appearance of a cocktail.

Paolo Dalla Mora, founder of Strucchi, says: “We have a rhubarb style because we’re respectful of tradition, but my idea is to have something a bit rounder and less medicinal than many amaros. We launched a bitter bianco because what we have seen is a lot of interest in bitters. It’s different from the red not only in the colour, but because of the botanicals we use.”

Rather than relying heavily on rhubarb, the recipe incorporates an infusion of 15 botanicals, including hops, citrus fruits and aromatic spices. “The idea was to have something that could appear more vibrant on the nose, with balsamic notes. We want to bring elegance inside a cocktail and make something that is easy to understand for a consumer palate. Bianco is received very well by bartenders as you don’t have the red changing the colour of the drink,” Dalla Mora adds.

The rise of the White Negroni and Highball offers more opportunities for white bitters to establish themselves. Missaglia notes that new flavour profiles complement, rather than replace, the traditional-style products.

“It is not about replacing traditional red bitters, but about expanding the aperitivo experience,” he says. “Consumers today are looking for more choices and different occasions. More contemporary expressions, with distinctive botanical profiles such as rhubarb, allowing bartenders to be more creative and attract new consumers into the category.”

Alongside innovation, transparency and authenticity have become increasingly important to consumers. According to Dalla Mora, they are becoming much more curious about what goes into the bottle and the regional traditions behind Italian bitters and amari.

“Consumers are more interested in understanding what is inside a spirit and the complexity of it,” he adds. “In the US and UK, there was a huge boom for amaro bitters and they want to understand where in Italy the amaro is from. At the end there is a consumer who is more conscious about not only the tradition but also what is inside the bottle.

“Campari set up a huge standard of quality and now there are more small brands bringing quality who can also tell a story. The Negroni opened doors, and now I see the chance for more brands to grow,” Dalla Mora continues.

Missaglia agrees: “We’re extremely pleased with the momentum behind Santoni L’Aperitivo. The relaunch has been a key milestone, giving the brand a stronger international identity while remaining deeply connected to our Tuscan heritage.

“The brand is growing consistently quarter over quarter, with accelerating demand across existing and new markets. We are expanding distribution, increasing visibility with leading bartenders and hospitality partners, and receiving very positive feedback from both the trade and consumers.”

While Italy remains the spiritual home of the category, international markets are becoming increasingly important to its growth. For Santoni, the UK sits alongside the US as one of its priority markets. 

“Italy remains our home market and the foundation of our identity,” says Missaglia. “The UK and US are key strategic markets, particularly cities such as London and New York, where bartenders and consumers strongly influence global trends. We are also seeing exciting opportunities in Asia, where interest in premium Italian aperitivo culture continues to grow.”

Strucchi has already seen the UK become its biggest export success story. “We launched four years ago now in Italy and this year Italy will be surpassed by the UK, which is the fastest growing market for us. I think the bitter bianco will overcome the rosso in the UK,” says Dalla Mora.

The US also represents Strucchi’s next key opportunity, with a market launch planned later this year. “In the US they are the bitter drinkers, the Negroni drinkers, so we have the right product for their palate,” adds Dalla Mora. 

However, for Strucchi, Dalla Mora doesn’t want to “follow volume”. He says: “I want to follow quality. We’re not in a rush, we can be in the on-premise then move to off.”

As the brand grows, Strucchi is also working to develop premium bottled RTDs with a focus on quality. “Negroni drinkers are not typically the youngest consumers, so we’re working on innovation in the RTD space, with more quality.”

Dalla Mora continues: “If you’re spending £10, £15 on a cocktail there’s room to do an RTD that is a different price with a higher quality.” 

This innovation continues within Strucchi’s core bitters portfolio, with a new southern Italian-inspired bitter currently in development.

“We’re also working on a new bitter from the south of Italy,” adds Dalla Mora. “The heritage is in Milano so I want to do a new bitter bringing the heritage and the botanicals of the south of Italy. We have a lot of fantastic botanicals, such as oranges and lemons, so something more related to that.” The new expression is expected to launch in spring 2027 across Italy, the UK and the US.

Key brands continue to dominate in volume, but today’s bitters category is much broader. The popularity of the Negroni – the bestselling cocktail in the world’s best bars for five consecutive years according to Drinks International’s Cocktail Report – has introduced many consumers to Italian bitter flavours, allowing brands to explore new botanical styles.

“The future belongs to brands that can combine heritage with innovation,” says Missaglia. “The opportunity is not only to grow aperitivo consumption, but to export the Italian aperitivo lifestyle globally.”