Sanbitter from Sanpellegrino

From Bitter Sanpellegrino to Sanbittèr

Anyone who has been on vacation in Italy may be familiar with the small bottles with the refreshing contents. We are talking about Sanbittèr. The bitter lemonade from Sanpellegrino has been refreshing Italians and visitors to Italy since 1961. It was in this year that Sanpellegrino invented the refreshing drink and named it Bitter Sanpellegrino. It consists of mineral water, which SanPellegrino has been bottling since 1899, as well as citrus fruits and aromatic Alpine herbs. With its bitter taste, it stands in stark contrast to widely available soft drinks such as cola, Fanta and Sprite, but connoisseurs prefer the bitterness of the Italian product to its sugar-soaked American counterparts.

Sanbittèr

Variants of Sanbitter

In over 50 years of history, other flavors have been added to the classic Sanbittèr. Sanbitter Dry was introduced in 1980. With its sweeter notes, it is aimed at a female audience. A short time later, Sanbittèr Doré or Sanbitter Gold was introduced as a “golden” variant, while the classic Sanbitter and Sanbitter Dry have a reddish hue. In 2011, Sanbitter celebrated its 50th anniversary and to mark the occasion, Sanpellegrino created new flavors in the Sanbittèr Emozioni di Frutta range: Grapefruit (Pompelmo), Cinnamon, Peperoncino and Passionfruit.

Sanbitter Pompelmo

Cocktails with Sanbittèr

Sanbitter does not have to be enjoyed on its own – its intense color and exceptional taste also make it ideal for preparing cocktails. For a Sanbittèr Happy Hour, white wine or sparkling wine is mixed in equal parts with Sanbittèr. For a Sanbittèr Aranciata (Orange), you need Sanbittèr, Sanpellegrino Aranciata and white wine in a ratio of 2:5:3 and serve it with a slice of orange. Markus Weidenfeller from BAR DEVILS in Wiesbaden uses 4 cl Sanbitter, 1 lemon zest, 4 cl Punt e Mes and 2 dashes of orange bitters for his Sweethearts cocktail. To prepare the cocktail, fill a tumbler with ice cubes, add the ingredients except the lemon zest, stir with a bar spoon and, after 20-30 seconds, spritz with the lemon zest. The rim is then rubbed off and everything is poured into a glass. The vodka bitters are served in a wine glass, into which 10 cl of Sanbitter, 3 cl of lime juice and 5 cl of vodka are poured. The glass is then garnished with a cocktail cherry.