For a cool cocktail nothing beats the sgroppino

Now that we’re firmly in the throes of summer and are collectively aiming our middle fingers at the sky like angry little sundials, it’s time to think about how we can stay cool while still drinking, responsibly. I don’t cope well in the heat, never have. I have fat and muscle strategically placed around my body to help me stay warm during Scottish winters. There is nothing about my genetic makeup that is designed to weather a couple of hours in a park in a city heatwave. So staying cool is the MO for me; most things must be topped up with ice, and I’m not above dunking my hand in my Aperol Spritz and rubbing its ice on the back of my neck. Ice is a must, but even better if something freezy can be incorporated into the drink itself. Enter the sgroppino. 

This drink was allegedly created in Venice in the 16th century, a time when ice (and therefore staying cool) was a privilege and before cocktails were even a thing. The transatlantic ice trade didn’t hit its stride until the 19th century, so ice was cut from rivers and lakes in the winter, then stored in “ice houses” throughout the year. The sgroppino, therefore, was a drink for aristocrats, or the kind of person who had the time to fret about procuring ice rather than dodging a plague. The recipe then was simple and is to this day: a distilled alcohol, a touch of sugar and ice, predominantly flavoured with lemon. Whisked together, it would have looked like a slushie – and that’s the way it’s served today.

These days, lemon sorbet is used – a clever way to get the sharp one-two of citrus and sweetness – with fruit-forward prosecco. The sorbet froths up the prosecco and keeps the drink cool. Nowadays, the spirit added is often vodka or gin, though back in the day it was likely a grape distillate, like eau de vie.

I’ll go out on a limb and say that in London, where I live, I think most people’s introduction to the sgroppino is likely via Bar Swift. It’s a chain that doesn’t feel chain-y, with three outposts (Borough, Shoreditch, Soho). Their sgroppino is £9 and uses the elderflower liqueur Saint Germain in lieu of vodka, making it lighter (and presumably why it is £9 – cheaper than most other cocktails of equivalent quality).

There’s also room for interpretation, so long as the constituent parts of lemon, prosecco and sorbet are honoured. At CC Blooms in Edinburgh, their sgroppino is based around Malfy Gin con Limone, and with the option to choose your sorbet from lemon, raspberry or blackcurrant.

And it’s a recipe simple enough to execute at home. Remember my “big jug of cocktails” column from last week? Well, measure out prosecco and vodka in a jug in a 3:1 ratio, stir gently so it doesn’t lose its fizz, and then pour carefully into coupes, topped with a scoop of sorbet. Repeat until you have achieved the desired effect of hazy bliss. Though in this heat, that shouldn’t take long.