Golden hour

“APERITIVO PROVIDES A MOMENT TO PAUSE, CONNECT AND RELAX, BATHED IN THE SOFT GLOW OF EARLY EVENING SUNLIGHT”

Words: Giulia Crouch

Is there anything better than a drink and a little snack with friends before dinner?

A golden hour ritual that awakens the appetite, offers a chance to unwind, and builds excitement for the meal to come. This is aperitivo – the beloved continental tradition of pairing a pre-dinner drink with a selection of perfectly formed bites. Typically enjoyed between 6 and 8pm, it’s a moment to pause, connect and relax – ideally at a charming bar in a piazza, bathed in the soft glow of early evening sunlight.

Here in the UK, we’ve slowly come to embrace the charm of this pre-dinner ritual. After all, if anything can elevate an after-work tipple, it’s a salty olive or a slice of prosciutto. And there are few better places to enjoy both of those than Borough Market – whether you’re settling in for a drink and a bite or picking up beautiful ingredients to recreate the experience at home.

“Aperitivo, or aperitif, is to me a very continental – even Mediterranean – phenomenon,” says Monika Linton, founder of Spanish food company and London tapas institution Brindisa. “It centres around a number of key elements: weather, people, food and drink. Most towns, villages and cities have beautiful central squares where people of all ages meet up – often daily – for a walk, a chat, a drink and a snack. Borough Market is such a perfect space for this kind of gathering, not unlike a square in a Spanish city. What is also incredible about Borough is that you can take a walk to the river and back, in a similar way to how Spanish folk promenade as part of the evening experience – taking in the joys of the city and the river.”

The roots of the aperitivo stretch back to ancient times. The idea of a drink to stimulate the appetite or aid digestion dates to the classical era. The Romans drank vinum absinthiatum (wine infused with wormwood) for its digestive benefits, and the Greek physician Hippocrates recommended bitter herbal infusions to support digestion. The aperitivo’s core idea is bound up with its name, which comes from the Latin ‘aperire’, meaning ‘to open’.

The modern aperitivo, as both a drink and a cultural ritual, began to find form in 1786, when Antonio Benedetto Carpano, a distiller in Turin, created vermouth – wine fortified with a blend of herbs and spices. Around this time, the term aperitivo began appearing in advertisements and product labels. From there came the rise of iconic Italian aperitivo brands: Campari (founded in Milan in 1860), Martini & Rossi (Turin, 1863), and Aperol (Padua, 1919). These bitters and vermouths were poured in cafes and bars across northern Italy, sold as a way of opening the palate before dinner. In cities like Milan and Turin, the aperitivo hour became a stylish and sociable ritual – drinks accompanied by small, salty snacks like olives, nuts or slices of salumi.

Nowadays in Italy and Spain, bars get competitive with their aperitivo offering, each hoping to outdo each other with ever more elaborate and delicious snacks. “People are fully aware of the specialities that each bar offers and they may go to a few in one evening – best croquetas in one place, best wines, best anchovies in another, best ham in another,” says Monika.

Though, as Gisela Garcia Escuela from Borough’s Gastronomica Italian deli warns, you need to be careful not to spoil your appetite. “Aperitivo shouldn’t be heavy – you don’t want lots of bread that’s going to fill you up. Instead, I’d recommend anything in oil: olives, artichokes, mushrooms. In Spain we have a pickle with a bit of cheese on a toothpick, but you could also have cheese, sundried tomato and an olive. You can have anything you like really. There are no rules. I’d just avoid very filling food, unless that’s what you’re going for.”

In recent times, though, the aperitivo has in some places evolved into the “apericena” – a blend of aperitivo and cena (dinner). Bars began offering buffets or substantial platters for the price of a drink, blurring the lines between drinks and dinner and providing a budget-friendly way for young professionals and students to enjoy a night out. But if you’re sticking to the original spirit of aperitivo – that is, opening the appetite – what’s the best way to do it? Which food and drink pairings truly hit the mark?

“At Brindisa, we’ve always brought in ingredients that are perfect for this moment: manchego cheese, hams, anchovies, sardines, pickles, piquillo peppers, olives,” says Monika. Her go-to pairings? “Beer with salted Marcona almonds, red vermouth with olives or gildas, Iberico ham with champagne, and aged white wine with cured sheep’s cheese.”

Ewa Weremij from Italian food importers Bianca Mora prefers to keep things classic. “I like salami sliced by hand, some chunks of parmigiano Reggiano, a few olives and a glass of wine. You could also add fruit – I really love cheese with strawberries.”

For Gisela, it all comes down to the drink’s flavour profile. “I’d go for something classic like vermouth or Campari – the bitterness gets your taste buds going and makes you hungry. Some people prefer white wine or prosecco, but I think that bitterness is key.”

I have to agree. My ideal combination is a Campari and soda, served with chunks of aged parmigiano dotted with balsamico tradizionale, or little slices of bread topped with a slice of cold butter and a salty anchovy. That, to me, is aperitivo heaven. But really, it can be whatever you want it to be: Italian, Spanish, French, Japanese, Mexican, the list is endless. The formula is simple: gather your friends, pour some drinks, and lay out some excellent snacks.

As Monika puts it: “It’s an incredibly happy way to meet with family, different generations, friends – and a great way to make more friends!”

We’ll raise a glass to that.