For Francesco Mionetto, senior brand manager and part of the family winemaking dynasty at Italian supplier Mionetto, the rationale for adding an aperitif to its sparkling wine portfolio is a simple one.

“We are the most widely distributed prosecco brand internationally,” he says. “We are already a part of the spritz trend, so why wouldn’t we want to take advantage and be able to offer 100% Mionetto-branded experience?”

With some 40 million bottles of Mionetto being produced each year from grapes grown in the Prosecco DOC region of northeastern Italy, the brand – which has been around since 1887 – has certainly been involved in its fair share of spritzes.

But now the winemaker wants to own the occasion in its entirety.

Hence the decision to develop Mionetto Aperitivo – a bittersweet orange aperitif made from natural citrus flavours and botanical extracts – last year. Following a limited DTC rollout via Amazon and Slurp in the UK this autumn, the NPD will launch in earnest over here early next year.

But what are its chances of being a success?

Aperol comparisons inevitable

With its fluorescent orange colour, Mionetto Aperitivo will inevitably draw comparisons to Aperol. The Campari-owned brand has seen sales shoot up 15% to £21.5m in the past year on the back of growing demand for spritzes in the UK [NIQ 52 w/e 21 April 2024].

Framed in this context, it would be easy to dismiss the NPD as a bandwagon-hopping exercise from a brand desperate to ride on the coat-tails of Aperol’s success. Especially as – driven by wider challenges in branded sparkling wine – sales of Mionetto have fallen 17% on volumes down 22% [NIQ].

Francesco Mionetto doesn’t see it entirely this way. Mionetto’s Aperitivo is less sweet than Aperol, but less bitter than Campari, he insists, adding that it also offers a point of difference, being made entirely from natural ingredients.

Served in a spritz, it tastes similar to, but recognisably different from, the 105-year old aperitif from which it will look to steal share. Carrying an rsp of £12 per 50cl bottle, it’s priced comparably too (Aperol typically retails for £17 per 70cl bottle). But Mionetto says UK market research showed that Aperitivo scored higher than Aperol with shoppers on both quality connotations and purchasing intent.

Spritz trade-up

Mionetto would do well to lean into this ‘similar, but better’ narrative. As spritzes grow in popularity in the UK, shoppers are likely to seek out more interesting serves. Suppliers both large and small recognise this – just look at Fever Tree’s rosé-wine based spritz with French winemaker Maison Mirabeau, Pernod Ricard’s investment behind Lillet (the brand recently partnered with Netflix’s Emily In Paris) and the launch of Black Lines’ Hugo Spritz RTD earlier this year.

There’s no reason why a more upmarket Aperol alternative can’t also have its place in the spritz space.

Mionetto could also draw upon its prosecco expertise by marketing Aperitivo alongside its wines, following in Fever-Tree’s footsteps. Given half of the serve is typically made up of prosecco, why not entrust your spritz experience to a winery that has been making the stuff for almost a century-and-a-half?

There are also clear cross-selling opportunities in grocery. Mionetto – already widely stocked in the mults – will surely be having conversations with retailers about gondola-end activations and in-store sampling opportunities to support the launch.

“Broadening our portfolio across different categories within BWS enables us to ensure we’re relevant to a wider spectrum of shoppers and maintaining our relevance in the category,” says Sophie Wells, senior brand manager at Mionetto owner Freixenet Copestick. “We intend to increase support for Mionetto in the UK for 2025, with plans to drive awareness and footfall to store.”

With shoppers increasingly comfortable heading to own label for their sparkling fix, the ability to offer one big branded spritz experience might be just the livener Mionetto needs.

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