Move over, Aperol: American-made spritzes are here

After a day on the trail, cocktail hour might be a simple slug of whiskey. But why not enjoy more of the natural beauty that was the purpose of getting there after all? With a new wave of alpine spirits, American distillers are making that proposition quite unique.

In 2005, the Austrian stone pine liqueur Zirbenz was the first bottle brought to the state. Haus AlpenzMany importers in the beverage business take credit for these complex, herbal, extremely bitter drinks gaining a foothold in the United States. “It literally has the aroma of something that surrounds you when you’re in the mountains,” says Eric Seid, founder of Haus Alpenz. “It immediately takes you out to that place.” Until 2011, when Sother Teague and Ravi Derosi opened amor y amargo In New York City’s East Village – the country’s first bar dedicated to bitters, alpine and more – the bottles offered were still European. “Now, almost any distillery in America you can think of is adding an aperitif or digestif or amaro to their portfolio,” says Teague.

9 Best American Alpine Spirits for Summer Spritzes

facia brutto

Across the river from Amor y Amargo in Brooklyn, facia brutto Amaro executes half a dozen Italian styles confidently, though not necessarily reverently. The distillery’s dark, resinous, deliciously smoky Amaro Alpino stands on par with mezcal in cocktails, but it has enough going for it to make a satisfying sipper on its own. In contrast, the flavor of Faccia Brutto at Centerbay, an herbal liqueur sourced from the mountains of Abruzzo, is distinctly bright and light. Packed with lemon balm and anise hyssop, it makes a delicious swap for Chartreuse. “We wanted a center that was more appropriate for American tastes,” says founder and distiller Patrick Miller. “It’s lower ABV, so it’s cheaper on the shelf. And a little less sweet than Chartreuse.”

Ada Rhine

But Ada Rhine In Asheville, Rhett Murphy and Chris Bower take advantage of western North Carolina’s incredible biodiversity as well as rich regional traditions in folk medicine and moonshining. Murphy explains, “With our Appalachian Fernet, we were trying to make it taste like a dark Appalachian cove with hemlock trees and moss dripping and slippery rocks and rotting leaves and, like, little flowers.” “We were trying to give Amaro Flora the flavor of an Appalachian meadow. Sunshine and grass and insects buzzing around and wild flowers.”

leopold brothers

But leopold brothers In Denver, Master Distiller Todd Leopold applies the training he received in Europe to herbs and flowers found in the Rockies, creating an alpine herbal liqueur with lots of warming spices and a concentrated cola tang; Its name, Three Pins, is a nod to old-school three-pin telemark ski bindings.

Breckenridge Distillery

far west Breckenridge DistilleryMaster Distiller Hans Stafsholt uses gentian and locally harvested genepi to create Breckenridge Bitter that lives up to its name. “It’s completely bitter,” he says. “Then you get the sage. The milk thistle brings a really savory mouthfeel. And the fresh citrus and cherries bring sweetness and light.”

Bravo Spirits

Over the years, Mhairi Volsgen, Founder and CEO Bravo Spirits in Woodinville, Washington, has collaborated with bartenders to create alpine spirits that meet their specific needs. “We see amaro as an exploration of terroir and palate,” says Volsgen. “How does a city drink? What flavors are there in the region?” One of BROVO’s earliest bottles was Douglas Fir Liqueur; The two latest, developed in collaboration with Chicago bar professionals Micah Melton and Chad Hause, return to the alpine idyll and botanical palette of the Cascades. The woodsy Uncharted Rhapsody is a dead ringer for green Chartreuse in ABV, brix and acid, and the floral Gen P approximates a European Genépi or yellow Chartreuse, making them easy swaps for mixing – though the different flavors powerfully highlight the place where they’re made.

“We harvest the spring buds of Douglas fir, usually at Mount Baker, no more than a third of the way from any one tree,” Wolsgen says. These liqueurs also depend on hops, of which Washington state is the world’s largest producer.

talking cedar

The newest bottle arrives talking cedar In Rochester, Washington, owned by the Chehalis Tribe. Before they could distill plants that had flourished long before Europeans arrived on the continent, the Chehalis had to fight to overturn a racist law dating back to the Andrew Jackson administration that banned alcohol production on tribal lands. Released this spring, Talking Cedar Amaro is earthy, citrusy and herbal with a delightful dry finish. “The Garry oak and pine forests have shaped the history and cuisine of the Chehalis people, so being able to use these ingredients in our amaro is very important to us,” says Talking Cedar general manager Matt Hoffman, best known among whiskey lovers as the former master distiller of Seattle’s Westland Distillery.

When it comes to mixing, Hoffman naturally leans in the direction of whiskey, using Talking Cedar Amaro in place of Campari in the Boulevardier. But we love these American alpine spirits best for their simplest, most campsite-friendly drinks. All the botanical complexity you want is probably present in the bottles.

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This article is from the Summer 2026 issue of Outside magazine. To receive the printed magazine, Become an External+ member here.