Scotland’s sweaty summer sees spritz sales surge

Scots have been ‘going mad for spritz’ during the current heatwave, according to independent hospitality group DRG, which has reported that sales of the cocktail have come close to tripling over the past two weeks.

DRG – which has more than 20 bars and restaurants across Scotland’s cities, including the popular Di Maggio’s, Amarone, and Café Andaluz brands – has reported a general sales spike in refreshing serves as the hot weather has persisted.

The Group said it had shifted more than 13,300 pints of lager in one week, up by 62%, while one of its bars, The Citizen in Glasgow, even had to call in emergency lager supplies as customers had drank its Tennent’s stocks dry.

It added, however, that its customers hadn’t lost sight of the importance of hydration, with more than 10,000 jugs of water ordered in DRG units over the same period, up by 3000 on the previous week.

Nadine Carmichael, head of sales at DRG, said: “Anybody who thought the spritz craze was over is sorely mistaken – just ask our bar staff! We’ve seen a massive surge in drinks sales as the first great weather of the year arrived. Even accounting for a bank holiday Monday, we wouldn’t expect to see sales at this level.

“Like much of the industry post pandemic, many of our bars and restaurants have new outdoor areas and customers have been taking advantage. With more good weather to come, it’s great news for us and the rest of the industry, and just what everybody needs to really kickstart the summer.”

A spritz is a wine-based cocktail of Italian origin, consisting of prosecco, digestive bitters and soda water, first concocted 100 years ago in Venice. Despite that antiquity, Google stats indicate that searches for the term ‘Aperol Spritz’ hit an all-time high in the UK in the first week of June.