Milan Aperitivo Guide: The Art of the Italian Happy Hour

Milan invented the modern aperitivo ritual, and the city takes its cocktail hour more seriously than anywhere else in Italy. From approximately 6pm until 9pm, bars across the city transform — cocktail prices hover around 8-12 euros, and the price of each drink entitles you to unlimited access to elaborate buffets of hot and cold food that effectively substitute for dinner at a fraction of a restaurant's cost.

The Negroni is Milan's signature aperitivo cocktail — a bittersweet combination of gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth that captures the Italian genius for combining simple ingredients into something greater than the sum of their parts. The Campari Spritz and Aperol Spritz are equally beloved, while the more adventurous might order a glass of Franciacorta, the excellent local sparkling wine produced in the hills south of the city that competes confidently with Champagne.

The Brera neighbourhood around Via Madonnina is one of the best aperitivo hunting grounds — chic but unpretentious bars fill their terraces with design-conscious locals from early evening. The Navigli canals and the area around Piazza Gae Aulenti in Porta Nuova are equally excellent. Bar Basso near Porta Venezia claims to have invented the Negroni Sbagliato — made with Prosecco instead of gin — and remains a Milan institution serving generous aperitivo buffets to a loyal local crowd that has been coming through its doors for decades.