Aperol

At the Doubletree in Norwalk I spied Aperol set just back enough from the liquor lights appropriately desultory in the hotel bar(Safire), post a closing shift opening the new store in Westport(Martha put in an appearance)...

...turns out I was the first to order it, ever: "free, then?" I asked. The dour bartender smirked, spat(he didn't actually spit, but I thought he might...you as well could cop an attitude working in a busy hotel bar. My favorite was the Bulgarian woman who looked forward to seeing us each night, came into the store a couple times, even)

Ahhh...aperol...you reach for the heights of Campari, slither, return to Robitussin.

How did you have the Aperol?

I have to admit that I am a fan of Aperol. I agree that is the consistency of cough syrup but served over ice, with a splash of soda, it makes a nice aperitif. It's sweeter and less bitter than Campari and has more citrus flavor. It's also used as an ingredient in of my favorite cocktails at In Fine Spirits...the Fresh & Clean, which is a mixture of gin, Aperol, bitters, lemon.

In a devil-may-care, exploratory, vein I and a co-worker had it as shots. I realized my mistake afterwards.

Not the least of the problems with shooting Aperol is that is has a lower ABV than many wines (11%).

also, it rendered the hypodermics unusable...alas

Aperol only before noon. Campari after. A fine, balanced lifestyle.

I experiment a lot with cocktails, particularly substituting similar liquors. For example switching ingredients for Negronis and Manhattans yields lots of good results-not so for Aperol. I find it too sweet and full of glycerine mouth feel to mix in many drinks. Substituting Cynar, Put e Mes, or Ramazzotti for Campari works fine-Aperol just screws it up.

I suppose as a very minor component in a longer drink might work, but the only real success I had making a reasonable cocktail was gimlet-like combos with gin and vodka. I prefer the gin at about 8 gin to one Aperol.

Interesting beverage though-you really can taste rhubarb.

One humble suggestion, for aperitif, switch to "pastis" (an aniseed-licorice based spirit) from Southern France that is the less dangerous, but very stimulating, successor to Absinthe.
It really lifts your spirits, no pun intended, and stimulates the appetite.
Ask your bartender if he (or she) carries Henri Bardoin, The Rolls-Royce of pastis, and the answer is negative order a Ricard.
The ratio should be One part liquor, Five parts water.

A votre santé...