Campari continues to expand the Aperol Spritz experience beyond the bar. After launching the RTD can format in the UK, the Italian brand is now launching its Aperol Spritz Ready-to-Serve in a 20 cl bottle in France. Same logic, different packaging.
As we discussed a few weeks ago: Campari had officially announced the launch of Aperol Spritz TO GO in a can in the UK, a 250 ml format designed to be consumed directly, without a glass or shaker. This sent a strong signal to the entire industry about the brand's direction.
The French version of this strategy has now become clearer, with a bottle format (already launched in Canada since 2022).
Same ambition, different format
Instead of a can, Aperol is opting for a sleek 20 cl glass bottle for France, with a subtle engraving of the iconic Aperol Spritz glass. The product is sold in packs of 3, at a recommended retail price of €7.90 including tax, and will be available from June 2026 in supermarkets and wine shops.
The difference with the British can is not insignificant. This isn't about "drinking from the bottle at a festival"; the positioning remains that of an aperitif at home, to be served in a balloon glass, over ice, with a slice of orange. The Aperitivo ritual is preserved. Only the preparation is skipped.
Ready-to-Serve, what exactly is it?
The product has an alcohol content of 9% vol., compared to about 11% for a classic homemade Spritz, and follows the usual recipe: Aperol, sparkling wine, soda water. No more juggling the logic of three ingredients. You open it, you pour it, it's ready.
This "ready-to-serve" segment is not new in spirits, but Aperol is entering it with a significant advantage: its recipe is already in everyone's mind. There's no need to educate the consumer. They know the taste, they know the orange color. The only task here is to tell them that it's even simpler than before.
A new Aperol bottle too
Well-timed: this Ready-to-Serve format launch is accompanied by a redesign of the main Aperol bottle. The silhouette has been refined, the iconic orange is more prominently featured, and details inspired by the brand's history have been integrated into the label. The new bottle will gradually appear in stores starting May 2026, in 70 cl, 1 L, and 1.5 L formats.
In other words, Campari is not just releasing an additional product; it's an update of the brand's entire visual identity in France. Andrea Neri, Managing Director House of Aperitifs at Campari, clearly states: the objective is to "highlight Aperol and reaffirm its place at the heart of the modern aperitif".
The strategy is coherent, and it works
What's interesting about Aperol right now is the consistency of the overall strategy. Internationally, the RTD can for on-the-go consumption and markets where festival culture dominates. In France, the premium ready-to-serve bottle for at-home aperitifs, in a market where the "wine merchant" image remains important.
Two formats, two consumption occasions, two markets, but one and the same ambition: to ensure that Aperol Spritz is everywhere a drink is had. We know Campari's recipe for the brands it moves from on-trade to mass market. Aperol is the most accomplished example of this.
The Ready-to-Serve launch seems less like an innovation and more like the next logical step for a brand that has transformed an Italian regional aperitif into a global phenomenon. And in France, where Spritz has become one of the most ordered cocktails on terraces in just a few years, the window of opportunity was wide open.
