8 Botanical Italicus Cocktails That Are a Renaissance in a Glass

The next time you're perusing the aisles of the liquor store, or even when you're out at a bar, and you spy a blue bottle of Italicus, take the chance and give it a try. This bergamot-forward spirit from Sicily is a botanical adventure with citrus, floral, and balanced-bitter flavor. What better way to travel the world than with an Italicus cocktail. And these are just the recipes to help you take flight. 

Also known as the bergamot martini, this citrusy (and quite boozy) martini is reminiscent of a vesper. With an Italian kiss.

Ingredients

• 1½ ounces vodka
• ¾ ounce gin
• ½ ounce Italicus
• Ice
• Lemon wheel or lemon ribbon for garnish

Instructions

1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
2. In a mixing glass, add ice, vodka, gin, and Italicus.
3. Stir rapidly to chill.
4. Strain into the chilled glass.
5. Garnish with a lemon wheel. 

Like the bergamot martini, there's more than one name for a white negroni that uses Italicus: the negroni bianco bergamotto. But that can be more of a mouthful than the drink itself, so a white negroni with Italicus is just fine too. 

Ingredients

• 1 ounce Italicus
• 1 ounce dry vermouth
• 1 ounce gin
• Ice
• Lemon peel or single olive for garnish

Instructions

1. In a mixing glass, add ice, Italicus, dry vermouth, and gin.
2. Stir rapidly to chill.
3. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice.
4. Garnish with a lemon twist. 

Skip the salt and sugar rim for an elegant and elevated margarita with bright, floral flavors that will make you wonder how you never discovered these sooner. Good news. You'll never have to live without them now.

Ingredients

• 1 ounce silver tequila
• 1 ounce Italicus
• ½ ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
• ¼ ounce agave syrup
• Ice
• Lemon peel or three olives for garnish

Instructions

1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
2. In a cocktail shaker, add ice, tequila, Italicus, lime juice, and agave syrup.
3. Shake to chill.
4. Strain into the chilled glass.
5. Garnish with a lemon peel.

You'll fall in love, head over heels, for the bergamot bamboo. Mixing with the sherry, the Italicus brings a whole new life to this classic

Ingredients

• 2½ ounces dry white fino sherry
• 1 ounce Italicus
• 1-3 dashes aromatic bitters
• Ice
• Orange peel or single olive for garnish

Instructions

1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
2. in a mixing glass, add ice, sherry, Italicus, and bitters.
3. Stir rapidly to chill.
4. Strain into the chilled glass.
5. Garnish with an orange peel. 

Dance with your usual negroni flavors, but add a whisper of those bergamot aromas. If you really want to flip the script on the flavors, swap the proportions of the vermouth and the Italicus.

Ingredients

• 1 ounce gin
• 1 ounce Campari
• ¾ ounce sweet vermouth
• ¼ ounce Italicus
• Ice
• Orange twist for garnish

Instructions

1. In a mixing glass, add ice, gin, Campari, sweet vermouth, and Italicus.
2. Stir rapidly to chill.
3. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice.
4. Garnish with an orange peel.

Some nights, you just need to give the Aperol spritz or Hugo spritz a night off. And that's pretty fair because they work very hard in the spritz world. Good news, there's an alternative.

Ingredients

• 2 ounces prosecco
• 1 ounce Italicus
• Ice
• Fruit chunk or three olives for garnish

Instructions

1. In a wine glass, add ice, prosecco, and Italicus.
2. Garnish with fruit chunks. 

Play with the smoky side of Italicus for an earthy twist on the floral flavors. Not a Scotch fan? You can use a bourbon or rye instead. Cocktails are about enjoying them, so don't be afraid to modify them. 

Ingredients

• 1½ ounces Scotch
• ½ ounce Italicus
• ¼ ounce Suze
• ¼ ounce honey syrup
• Ice
• Thyme sprig for garnish

Instructions

1. In a mixing glass, add ice, Scotch, Italicus, Suze, and honey syrup.
2. Stir rapidly to chill.
3. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice.
4. Garnish with a thyme sprig. 

Lean into the bitter, biting flavors of a Manhattan with an Italicus drink that has just as much of a kick but that's a touch smoother. It may require a special trip to the liquor store, but the cocktail is well worth it.

Ingredients

• 1½ ounces amaro
• ¾ ounce Cynar
• ¾ ounce Italicus
• 2 dashes aromatic bitters
• Ice
• Orange ribbon for garnish

Instructions

1. Chill a martini glass or coupe.
2. In a mixing glass, add ice, amaro, Cynar, Italicus, and bitters.
3. Stir rapidly to chill.
4. Strain into the chilled glass.
5. Garnish with an orange ribbon. 

While you can absolutely enjoy Italicus straight or over some ice, why not mix those flavors up with one or two of these mixers? Think of it as a choose-your-own-Italicus-adventure. 

• Club soda
• Ginger ale
• Elderflower liqueur
• Simple syrup
• Honey liqueur
• Gin
• Tea
• Coconut water
• Sherry
• Tonic water
• Vodka
• Dry vermouth
• White rum
• Lemon juice
• Lime juice
• Orange liqueur
• Grapefruit juice
• Prosecco

Dare to adventure away from your usual vermouth and sherry, and turn to an Italian treat that so many already love and adore: Italicus. Rediscover this Italian liqueur of citrus and floral flavors. Slip it in a glass of bergamot bliss straight from Italy with love.