Bicicletta

The Italian spritz for those who find Aperol too sweet. Campari and dry white wine over ice—named for the cyclists who ordered it because they could still ride home after.

The Bicicletta is a refreshing Italian aperitivo from Lombardy that pairs Campari's bitter citrus character with the acidity of dry white wine and the lift of sparkling water — a combination simpler and less sweet than the Negroni or Americano but rooted in the same northern Italian bitter aperitivo tradition. The name means bicycle in Italian, and the drink's origin is attributed to the elderly cyclists of the Lombardy countryside — particularly in the areas around Lake Como and the Po Plain — who would stop at rural bars during long rides for a cool, refreshing drink that would sustain rather than impair the remainder of the journey. Campari was created by Gaspare Campari in Milan around 1860 and first sold commercially from the Caffè Campari in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. The liqueur's formula — a blend of herbs, fruit peels, and other botanical ingredients in a spirit base, producing a distinctive bright red color and clean, bitter citrus flavor — has been officially classified as a trade secret by the Campari Group, which acquired full ownership in 1994. The choice of dry white wine rather than sweet vermouth distinguishes the Bicicletta from the Americano: the wine's acidity and lower alcohol content create a more delicate, food-friendly drink whose total ABV is closer to a glass of wine than to a spirit cocktail, making it genuinely well-suited to the long-ride refreshment tradition its name celebrates.