Food & Occasion

In Veneto, Prosecco goes hand in hand with the aperitivo. The Spritz, Prosecco with Aperol and a splash of soda water, is the drink of the terraces from Padua to Venice. Aperol was created in 1919 in Padua by the Barbieri brothers; today the brand belongs to the Campari Group. Legend has it that Austrian soldiers were already adding water to wine in the 19th century, which is said to be the origin of the word 'spritzen' (to splash). This isn't documented.

Treviso is home to the Radicchio Rosso di Treviso, the red, bitter chicory with protected geographical indication status. In risotto al radicchio, the vegetable's bitterness and the pull of the sparkling wine balance each other out. The freshness of Prosecco doesn't weigh down the creamy rice but lifts it instead.

Baccalà mantecato, creamy whipped salt cod, is served in Veneto as an antipasto on slices of polenta, and the bubbles of the wine cut through the fat. Sarde in saor, fried sardines marinated in vinegar with onions, raisins and pine nuts, meet the fruit and acidity of the wine with their sweet-and-sour note.

In spring, white asparagus joins in, the Asparago bianco di Bassano with protected origin from Bassano del Grappa. Egg, asparagus and a glass of sparkling wine are an old pairing in this cuisine.

Treviso also claims tiramisù, said to have been invented in the 1960s at the restaurant Le Beccherie. Friuli makes the same claim. For dessert, a sweeter Spumante fits better, such as a Demi-Sec.

Asolo, the 'city of a hundred horizons,' where Caterina Cornaro, Queen of Cyprus, held her court in 1489, is a place for a quiet aperitivo in the late afternoon. There, you take your time: a glass, a few cicchetti, the view over the hills.