Antica Torino Stellare Primo Aperitivo di Vino Piedmont Italy 750ml

Turin invented the modern aperitivo. In the late 18th century, in this elegant Piedmontese city of grand cafés and arcaded boulevards, the first commercial vermouths were born — fortified, botanically infused wines created specifically for the ritual of the pre-dinner drink, the moment between the workday's end and the evening's beginning that Italian culture has always treated with particular seriousness. Antica Torino's first product, fittingly, was a vermouth: "the symbol of the city's excellence and elegant lifestyle," as the house describes it. Everything the brand has produced since has carried forward that same Turinese conviction that the aperitivo ritual deserves genuine craft.

Stellare Primo is wine-based rather than spirit-based — a meaningful distinction both for flavor and for practical retail purposes, since wine-based aperitivi are eligible for Wine & Beer License programs that spirit-based bitters cannot access. The production begins with botanicals macerated for varying lengths of time in a combination of Italian neutral wheat spirit and brandy distilled from Northern Italian grape varieties: gentian for structural bitterness, rhubarb root for tart depth, sweet and bitter orange peel for citrus brightness, grapefruit peel for additional zest, orris root for delicate floral elegance, and heartsease — the wild pansy historically used in European herbalism — for a botanical note that almost no other commercial aperitivo discloses. Once filtered, this infused spirit is blended with Italian Chardonnay and other Northern Italian white wines, sweetened with beet sugar, and colored entirely naturally with cochineal dye. The finished aromatized wine rests for three months before bottling.

The result is what Gowanus Wine Merchants calls "a lovely aperitivo from Piedmont" with "blood orange peel, bitter bark, and an almost creamy icing hint" that make it "a wonderful cocktail ingredient, or star of the perfect spritz." The official tasting notes promise tangy fruit candies, dried strawberry, and fresh orange pulp, with an approachable spike of gentian bitterness balanced against a hint of sweetness and lemon zest — finishing with grapefruit peel and subtle minerality that amplify beautifully with a splash of soda water. "Cheerful," in the importer's own framing — "this aperitivo invites easy enjoyment with very little need for contemplation." Turin's original gift to the world of pre-dinner drinking, still bottled in the city's own tradition.

Origins & Craftsmanship

Antica Torino is a Piedmontese aperitivo and vermouth producer whose first commercial product was, fittingly, a vermouth — the foundational spirit category that Turin itself essentially invented in the late 18th century, when Italian distillers and herbalists first began fortifying and botanically infusing wine for the specific purpose of the pre-dinner ritual. Stellare Primo is the house's wine-based aperitivo expression, produced in Northern Italy with a deliberate two-stage production approach that combines spirit infusion with wine blending.

The first stage involves macerating a specific set of botanicals — for varying lengths of time depending on each botanical's specific extraction requirements — in a combination of Italian neutral wheat spirit and brandy distilled from Northern Italian grape varieties. The disclosed botanicals include gentian, rhubarb root, sweet and bitter orange peel, grapefruit peel, orris root, and heartsease (wild pansy, a botanical with deep roots in European herbalism rarely seen in modern commercial aperitivo production). Once the maceration is complete, the infused spirit is filtered and then blended with Italian Chardonnay and other Northern Italian white wines — the wine-based foundation that distinguishes Stellare Primo from the neutral-spirit-based aperitivi like Aperol, Campari, or Select. The finished blend is sweetened with beet sugar and colored entirely naturally using cochineal dye — the traditional, insect-derived natural red colorant used across centuries of European food and beverage production. The aromatized wine is lightly filtered to remove any remaining particulate and rested for three months before bottling, at 17% ABV / 34 proof.

Critics Reviews

No published numerical critic scores are confirmed for Stellare Primo at this time.

Antica Torino official tasting notes (confirmed via multiple retailers):
"Aromas of tangy, fruit candies, dried strawberry, and fresh orange pulp introduce a spike of approachable gentian bitterness on the palate while expertly balancing a hint of sweetness with lemon zest on the edges of the tongue. Grapefruit peel and subtle minerality on the finish are amplified when combined with a splash of soda water."

Skurnik Wines & Spirits (US importer, confirmed):
"This cheerful aperitivo invites easy enjoyment with very little need for contemplation. Simply top with club soda or tonic or use in classic Italian cocktails such as an Americano, Spritz, or Negroni. As a bonus, this bright-eyed bitter is wine-based, and as such, is eligible for programs with Wine & Beer Licenses."

Tasting Profile

Nose
Bright cochineal red — the natural coloring producing a warm, inviting hue without any artificial contribution. Tangy fruit candies open the nose with an immediately accessible and specifically playful sweetness. Dried strawberry adds a slightly concentrated, jammy secondary fruit note. Fresh orange pulp adds vivid citrus brightness — the sweet and bitter orange peel maceration's most directly aromatic contribution. Blood orange peel and a subtle bitter bark quality from the gentian add structural depth beneath the fruit-candy sweetness.

Palate
A spike of approachable gentian bitterness introduces itself early — present and structural without being aggressive, the most specifically and the most carefully calibrated bitter note in the entire profile. This bitterness is expertly balanced with a hint of sweetness and lemon zest at the edges of the tongue. An almost creamy icing hint adds a surprisingly delicate secondary texture — a quality Gowanus Wine Merchants specifically noted as making this particularly suited for cocktail applications. The wine base contributes a gentler, more rounded mouthfeel than the neutral-spirit-based aperitivi typically deliver.

Finish
Grapefruit peel and subtle minerality carry the close, amplified considerably when combined with a splash of soda water — the official tasting note's own specific serving instruction. Clean, refreshing, and genuinely cheerful — a finish built for easy, repeated sipping rather than contemplative analysis.

Quick Overview

Cocktail Suggestions

Stellare Primo Spritz
2 oz Stellare Primo · 3 oz Prosecco · 1 oz soda water · orange slice. The official producer's own most direct recommendation — built over ice in a large wine glass.

Stellare Primo Americano
1.5 oz Stellare Primo · 1.5 oz sweet vermouth · soda water · orange peel garnish. A classic Italian application that benefits from the wine-based aperitivo's gentler, rounder character.

Stellare Primo Negroni
1 oz Stellare Primo · 1 oz gin · 1 oz sweet vermouth · expressed orange peel. The wine base softens the Negroni's classic structure into something more approachable.

Stellare Primo & Tonic
2 oz Stellare Primo · 3 oz tonic water · grapefruit peel garnish. The official tasting note's own specific suggestion — soda or tonic amplifies the grapefruit peel and mineral finish considerably.