Lidl's £6.50 Aperol alternative is back - can it make a 'Fraperol' Spritz?

Not to be an insufferable Debbie Downer about it, but the first bank holiday in May was forecast to be wetter than an otter’s pocket. Unless you’re in North Wales, randomly.

So wet, in fact, that only the bravest of us would risk sipping a ‘Fraperol’, the freezing Aperol slushie that’s got social media all hot under the collar.

I mean, forget frozen beverages, we need to be sipping hot toddies under quilted blankets with the spring we’re having. Or so you’d have thought…

Bizarrely, not everyone feels the same way. Not only have Fraperol videos racked up millions of plays on TikTok but Google searches for ‘spritz’ have already doubled since March.

But what if you don’t want to spend the best part of £20 on a bottle of Aperol for your own? Right on cue, Lidl has answered the prayers of those of us looking for a budget version.

Its annually produced Bitterol Aperitivo is priced at £6.49 (£5.49 for Lidl Plus members until May 8) versus Aperol’s £18 price tag and tastes, well, almost exactly the same for 69% less money.

Impressive stuff, especially when you consider it usually sells one bottle every minute in its first week.  

People are losing their minds over it, with one user, @boyracerrollbar, taking to X (formerly Twitter) to say when last year’s shipment dropped: ‘Today I waited half an hour for lidl to unpack the crate with the first bitterol spritzes of the szn.’

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Anyway, how does it compare to OG Aperol? Let’s get into it, shall we?

Natural orange oil and quinine bitters, check, herb and root-based botanical flavours, check, same burnt amber colour, also check. So far, so similar, although bear in mind, you will find Bitterol a fair bit sweeter than Aperol and its plethora of supermarket versions.

That’s where freezing it comes into its own (which is what is done for the Fraperol), dialling down said sweetness, bringing out the balancing bitter flavours instead.

But, what the traffic cone-coloured drink is a Fraperol and how do you make it?

Simple, you build an Aperol Spritz in the usual way, blending it together with a load of crushed ice as if it were a Moscow mule, frozen margarita or an adult sorbet in a glass. Either that, or pour Aperol Spritz into ice cube trays overnight, whack them in a blender and add in more Prosecco when you fancy a drink the next day.

Now you can have all the bitter-sweet deliciousness of an Aperol spritz, with the addition of brain freeze. There you go, it’s the double act you never knew you needed, thank me later.

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