Italicus Cocktail Competition: Home Spritz Challenge
As part of its ten-year anniversary celebrations, Italicus is challenging home cocktail enthusiasts to "imagine a new way to spritz." The prize bundle includes a limited-edition Italicus Decimo bottle, which commemorate a decade of bringing the historic Rosolio category to a modern global audience.
As with other competitions we host on Difford's Guide, our aim is to find new contemporary cocktails which can be replicated in bars and homes around the world. Hence, ingredients should be easily available, and recipes should not require homemade ingredients.
Cocktails based on 7 or fewer ingredients are preferred.
Cocktails may be long or short drinks (not shots), with a minimum finished volume of 90ml (3oz).
This competition is open to home cocktail enthusiasts anywhere in the world, other than France. (Sorry!)
Key Dates
1 September 2026 – Rosolio Day – Competition opens for entries
Judging
Entries will be judged by an industry panel including Simon Difford.
Photo/video = out of 10 points
Broad appeal/potential to become a contemporary classic = out of 10 points.
The competition is open to non-professional bartenders of legal drinking age in any country other than France.
Recipes entered must be the original creation of the competitor, and if a competitor is thought to have plagiarised a known, existing cocktail, they will be disqualified. [Please use Difford's Cocktail Finder to check for combinations of the same ingredients.].
Ingredients must be easily available the world over and cannot be homemade.
Batching, infusing and pre-combining of ingredients is not permitted.
Recipes must be submitted with an accompanying photograph, which will be included in the judge's evaluation and contribute to scoring.
By entering this competition, competitors agree to assign the copyright of their submitted images, videos, recipes, and related content to Odd Firm of Sin Ltd (Difford's Guide) and Pernod Ricard.
The organisers reserve the right to modify the regulations for organisational reasons or force majeure; participation implies full and unconditional acceptance of the rules, and the organiser is not responsible for delays, travel restrictions, or logistical issues beyond its control.
The organisers reserve the right to make the final decision on any matter relating to the competition's judging.
Cocktail names, including rude, lurid, sexual words or words associated with narcotics or motor vehicles, are prohibited.
