What is the ratio for a wine spritzer?

The usual ratio is about three parts wine to one part soda or sparkling water, as given by both VinePair and The Irish Times' John Wilson. For a lighter drink, Hungarian fröccs styles go to equal parts or even more water than wine.

What is the best wine for a spritzer?

A dry, crisp white with good acidity, such as Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Grüner Veltliner or Albariño, according to John Wilson. Skip your finest bottles, but don't use the cheapest either.

Should a wine spritzer have ice?

It's optional. VinePair says a traditional spritzer is served in a wine glass without ice, and John Wilson notes that if the wine and water are both cold, there's no need to dilute it further.

How many calories are in a wine spritzer?

USDA FoodData Central lists 49 calories per 100 grams for a wine spritzer, against 85 for red wine. Its 180-gram glass comes to about 88 calories.

Is an Aperol Spritz a wine spritzer?

Not quite. An Aperol Spritz uses sparkling wine, Aperol and a splash of soda. VinePair notes it isn't a true spritzer, which is still wine plus sparkling water.

Wine Spritzer: Ratios, Best Wines and Calories

A wine spritzer is chilled wine topped with chilled soda water or sparkling mineral water, most often about three parts wine to one part water. It’s lighter and less alcoholic than a full glass of wine, takes a minute to make and works with an everyday bottle. Here are the ratios from the sources we used, which wines to pick, red and rosé versions, and how the calories compare with wine.

The classic spritzer ratio

Both recipes we found agree on the basic proportion:

VinePair gives about three-quarters chilled white wine to one-quarter chilled sparkling water, with a slice of lemon or lime.
John Wilson, wine writer for The Irish Times, says the recipe generally calls for three parts wine to one part soda water or sparkling mineral water.

In practice, that’s 3 ounces of wine to 1 ounce of soda in a small glass, or 6 ounces of wine to 2 ounces of soda in a large one.

Lighter ratios: the Hungarian fröccs

In Hungary, the spritzer is called fröccs, and the ratio is part of the name. Wikipedia lists the common versions:

Hungarian name	Wine	Soda water
Kisfröccs	1 dl	1 dl
Nagyfröccs	2 dl	1 dl
Hosszúlépés	1 dl	2 dl
Sportfröccs	1 dl	4 dl
Krúdy-fröccs	9 dl	1 dl

A deciliter (dl) is 100 ml, about 3.4 fluid ounces. Wikipedia also notes that Serbian špricer is equal halves of white wine or rosé and sparkling water, and a Romanian summer spritzer is one part white wine to two parts water. In our view, equal parts is the best starting point for a long, hot afternoon, and three to one is right for a drink that should still taste clearly of wine.

How to make a wine spritzer

Chill both bottles. John Wilson says that if the wine and the water are both cold, there’s no need to dilute the drink further with ice.
Pour the wine first into a wine glass or a tall glass.
Top with soda water or sparkling mineral water in your chosen ratio.
Garnish lightly, or not at all. VinePair adds a slice of lemon or lime. Wilson lists herbs, a lemon slice or a dash of bitters as options, though he prefers the plain version.

VinePair says the traditional way is cold wine and cold soda in a wine glass, without ice. Ice is fine if your wine isn’t fully chilled, but it waters the drink down as it melts. We’d keep a bottle of white and a bottle of sparkling water in the fridge so a spritzer never needs ice.

Tip: We’d pour the soda gently down the side of the glass and give it one slow stir, so the drink keeps as much fizz as possible.

The best wines for a spritzer

Whites. Wilson recommends dry, aromatic whites with good acidity, naming Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Grüner Veltliner, Albariño and Muscat. His advice on price is sensible: don’t use your finest bottles, but don’t reach for the cheapest either, because the water dilutes the wine and any flaws show. Austria’s Grüner Veltliner, one of Wilson’s high-acid whites, is our pick, since VinePair thinks the spritzer most likely began in Austria.

Rosé. For a dry rosé spritzer, Wilson suggests a light Provence-style rosé. For something sweeter, he names Rosé d’Anjou or White Zinfandel. In our view, a dry pink spritzer is one of the best summer drinks for a crowd.

Reds. Avoid big, dry, tannic reds, says Wilson. In our view, water does a tannic red no favors. He suggests light reds such as Beaujolais, Valpolicella, Bardolino or inexpensive Pinot Noir from Chile, southern France or New Zealand. Beaujolais is made from Gamay, a light, juicy red that we think makes the best red spritzer, especially lightly chilled.

What to skip. We’d avoid heavily oaked Chardonnay and anything you’d save for a special dinner. A spritzer flatters fresh, crisp, inexpensive wine.

Wine style	Good examples	Why it works
Crisp white	Sauvignon Blanc, Grüner Veltliner, Albariño	Acidity keeps the drink tasting fresh after dilution
Aromatic white	Riesling, Muscat	Aromas still come through the bubbles
Dry rosé	Provence-style	Light and fruity, our summer pick
Sweeter pink	Rosé d’Anjou, White Zinfandel	For a softer, sweeter spritzer
Light red	Beaujolais, Valpolicella, Bardolino, Pinot Noir	Low tannin, so it doesn’t turn bitter

Calories: spritzer vs wine

USDA FoodData Central has an entry for a wine spritzer, built from about 88.5 grams of table wine and 60 grams of club soda, so its recipe is about 60 percent wine by weight. The numbers:

Drink (USDA entry)	Calories per 100 g	Alcohol per 100 g
Wine spritzer	49	6.2 g
Red table wine	85	10.6 g

USDA’s spritzer “glass” weighs 180 grams, about 6 fluid ounces, which works out to about 88 calories. A 5-ounce glass of red wine, by USDA’s figures, has about 125. The saving comes simply from replacing part of the wine with soda water, so the more water in your ratio, the fewer calories and the less alcohol per glass. A 3-to-1 spritzer will be closer to wine than USDA’s recipe is; a kisfröccs will be close to it.

Note: A spritzer is still an alcoholic drink, and a tall one can hold close to a full glass of wine. These figures are for comparison only, not diet advice.

Variations

Rosé spritzer: dry rosé and sparkling water with a strawberry or a sprig of mint.
Red spritzer: a light, chilled red such as Beaujolais with soda and an orange slice.
Lemonade spritzer: Wilson mentions white lemonade as an option for a sweeter drink.
Frozen: for a slushy pink drink, see our guide to frosé.
Zero-proof: use a dealcoholized wine; our guide to non-alcoholic wine explains what the labels mean.

Spritzer vs Aperol Spritz

They’re relatives, not twins. According to Wikipedia, the Italian spritz is a cocktail of sparkling white wine, sparkling water and a bitter liqueur such as Aperol or Campari, and that the plain wine-and-water version, the spritz bianco, is less popular in Italy today. VinePair says many believe the spritz began when Venice was under Austrian rule, and that the Aperol version isn’t a true spritzer.

Where the spritzer comes from

The word is Austrian German. Wikipedia explains that the Austrian name Gespritzter comes from spritzen, “to squirt”, and that most of Germany calls the same drink a Schorle. VinePair retells a Hungarian legend in which the scientist Ányos Jedlik brought soda water to a gathering at writer András Fáy’s new wine cellar in 1842 and mixed it into the wine. VinePair itself doubts the story and calls an origin in 19th-century Austria more likely. Wikipedia adds that the drink is still very popular in Austria and across Central and Eastern Europe.