This NA Spritz Is So Good, I May Never Order an Aperol Spritz Again

Amaro is shaping up to be the “it” drink of 2024. You’d be hard-pressed to find a drink menu that doesn't already feature amaro in at least a few of its craft cocktails, and you’ll be able to spot a bottle of Amaro Montenegro, Averna, or Ramazzotti on the shelf behind any cocktail bar worth its salt. Fernet — a particularly minty (some might say “mouthwashy”) amaro — has become the unspoken industry handshake among bartenders. I know this firsthand from essentially drinking my body weight in Fernet while bartending in Brooklyn. But that's another story for a rainy day.

Amaro cocktails, especially the ubiquitous Aperol Spritz, have also gained popularity. I love amaro, so I’m always looking for interesting bottles from lesser-known pockets of Italy or newer American amaro to taste and use in my spritzes. I also tend to gravitate towards very bitter drinks over sweet drinks. I’d order a Cynar Spritz over an Aperol Spritz on just about any occasion. The more bitter, the better in my book.

So, when I heard that Optimist Botanicals — one of my favorite LA-based nonalcoholic spirits brands — crafted a new NA riff on an Amaro Spritz, I knew I needed to try it. A spritzed version of the brand’s Cali Amaro, Optimist’s Cali Spritz is citrusy, herbaceous, bitter, and superbly balanced.

When I cracked open the can, it smelled like I had just cut into a fresh grapefruit. Beyond its ripe, citrusy aroma and flavor, this spritz has mellow herbal undertones from bay laurel, sage, and thyme, plus bitterness from gentian, wormwood, and dandelion root. Stress-relieving adaptogenic plants ashwagandha and schisandra are added to this list of ingredients, plus agave nectar for a touch of sweetness. It's nicely carbonated.

The beauty of the Cali Spritz is its subtlety. It's herbal and woodsy, but not so much that it tastes like a mouthful of pine needles. Its bitterness comes in gentle waves, first with the citrus peel, then with the Angostura-adjacent gentian root. It starts tart and citrusy but ends with a dry and slightly bitter finish, almost like a softer Negroni — one of my favorite classic cocktails.

I poured my can into a wine glass over a large cube of ice, popped in an orange slice, and did the same for my boyfriend. It was bleak-cold-early January, and we were both not drinking. We also both wanted something refreshing to sip before dinner. I should mention that he works at a craft brewery in Brooklyn, so we tend to taste lots of farmhouse ales, saisons, and other funky beers and wines together. He was strangely quiet after trying the Cali Spritz. We were stunned that this spritz drank like a complex amaro cocktail or a traditional spritz — without any alcohol.

If you’ve tried just about every NA wine, beer, and spritz out there and still haven’t quite found something that felt like your drink, give this Cali Spritz a shot. It's worth noting that each can has 20 calories and only 3 grams of sugar, so it won't weigh you down or lead to a hangover after a big weekend brunch. Plus, it’s a plant-packed mood booster. It's bright, it's perfectly bitter, and it’s so good that I’d order it over an Aperol Spritz any day.

To buy: Optimist Botanicals Cali Spritz, $22 at Optimist Drinks and The New Bar