Hugo cocktail snaps at Aperol's heels in UK summer of spritz

It is the summer of spritz in Britain, and the Hugo elderflower cocktail is snapping at the heels of the market-leader Aperol to be this year's favourite drink, according to British sales figures reported by the Guardian. The elderflower-based drink is enjoying explosive growth, with Campari, Sarti Rosa and limoncello varieties also taking off.

The Hugo's rise is a story that begins in the mountains of northern Italy, where the cocktail was invented in 2005 in the South Tyrolean town of Naturno. The drink — typically a mix of elderflower syrup, prosecco, sparkling water and mint — has become a staple of Alpine and northern Italian bars, and its growing popularity abroad is now resonating in the region where it was born.

For Piemonte, the spritz is more than a summer drink. The region's vineyards produce the prosecco grapes that feed the cocktail's base, and the aperitivo culture is woven into the social fabric of Turin's historic cafes. The Hugo's British success is a small but telling sign of how Italian drinking habits are being exported, even as the market leader remains an Italian brand.