This time last year I was sweating in our (my former) Sardinian vineyard, or cooling off in the crystalline Mediterranean on one of the island’s pristine beaches. This year I’m sweating my way through spreadsheets and the labyrinth of compliance that is direct-to-consumer shipping regulations in the U.S., working through the late stages of my business plan before I can even apply for my permits. Life looks very different these days — but exciting all the same. Though I do miss my Italian summers.
In truth, there is no summer quite like an Italian summer, and that’s coming from a Southern California girl at heart.
I could linger in those beach days forever. The sparkling turquoise sea, warm enough to stay in for hours. Vendors walking up and down the sand yelling, “Coco bello, coco fresco!!” — the traditional cry of the beach sellers hawking cold, refreshing treats. Fresh-cut watermelon after a nap under the umbrella. Sunset aperitivo by the sea with a bitter Campari spritz, a little bowl of olives, and potato chips alongside. Late dinners al fresco with the fresh catch of the day, a simple pasta, a few bottles of wine, and great conversation.
It’s endlessly relaxing, and it’s easy to see how the Italians have perfected the sweetness of doing nothing.
But since I can’t be in Italy this summer, the next best thing is recreating a taste of l’estate italiana at home. So I put together this little summer entertaining guide, inspired by the meals we’d savor al fresco with friends and family on the patio all summer long. Bonus points if you don’t sit down to eat until after 9pm, like they do in southern Italy.
Start with Aperitivo
No Italian gathering begins without aperitivo, and in summer that means one thing for me: a Campari spritz. Skip the sweeter, more approachable Aperol and reach for bitter Campari instead. Its bracing, herbal bitterness is exactly what you want alongside all the salty little bites that come out at aperitivo hour.
If you’re looking to branch out, I’ve also been mixing spritzes lately with Doladira Alpine Aperitivo (Full disclosure, this is one of my current marketing clients, but I am seriously obsessed. So delicious.). It’s in the same bittersweet family as Campari, but built from rhubarb, rosemary, plum, gentian, and elderflower, which gives it a more layered, herbal complexity. It makes an absolutely delectable summer spritz.
If a spritz isn’t in the cards, pour a rosato instead. If you’re in need of inspiration, check this out:
For me, especially when in Sardinia, I’m all about the Carignano rosato. It’s a savorier, more robust style that I absolutely love. You get those crunchy red fruit flavors like tart cherry, red currant, and cranberry with an herbaceous undercurrent and just a touch of tannic bite. As mentioned in my last Substack, my former father-in-law made an absolutely killer Carignano rosato with grapes he and his friend bought from Sulcis in the southern part of the island. He knew I loved it and waited for me to return to Sardinia to enjoy the very last bottle. A super thoughtful, sweet gesture coming from a man of few words who was rarely emotive.
What I would do for another bottle of that wine! Talk about limited production. Thankfully, there is Enrico Esu’s Nerominiera Carignano del Sulcis DOC Rosato, loaded with all the crunchy red fruits and Mediterranean macchia one could hope for with real structure that would stand up to a whole array of summer dishes.
Easy Aperitivi to Prep Ahead of Time
The trick to good aperitivo is that almost none of it should require a lot of last-minute effort. These are some easy go-to’s:
Olives — straight up or marinated in olive oil with citrus zest, garlic, and herbs. I had a really delicious version at Terre di Gratia in Sicily where their mom marinated the olives in grated citrus zest, carrots, celery, ground almonds, and herbs. So tasty. I also love this recipe for citrus marinated olives.
Cheeses & salumi — a simple board is all you need. Let the cheese and the wine do the talking.
Artichokes and sundried tomatoes sott’olio — jarred, oil-packed, and endlessly useful for scattering across a board or folding into a pasta later in the week. Alternatively, here’s one of my easy summer recipes for grilled artichokes with a citrus shallot vinaigrette.
Pizzette — the little bite-sized pizzas that disappear the fastest at any Italian gathering. You can buy these at just about any bakery in Italy, but they’re easy to prepare at home. You can just cut puff pastry into circles, spoon some tomato sauce in the middle, top with mozzarella and olives or anchovies, and bake.
Sfincione — the thick, spongy, Sicilian pizza bread topped with tomato, onion, anchovy, and breadcrumbs. It’s rustic, it’s a little different from what most people expect from “pizza,” and it’s a conversation starter. One of my favorite things I ate in Sicily two years ago.
The Pasta Course
For a summer dinner al fresco, I’m torn between two pasta dishes every time. So, I’ve given you both.
Tuna Linguine with Cherry Tomatoes
This is a seared take on the classic canned-tuna linguine — swap in a good piece of fresh tuna, seared hard and fast so the center stays rare (tonno scottato), and let it flake into the sauce right before serving. The cherry tomatoes should collapse into something close to a quick sauce, while the tuna adds richness without ever tasting fishy.
What you’ll need:
Linguine
A good-quality fresh tuna steak
Cherry tomatoes, halved
Garlic, thinly sliced
Capers
White wine
Fresh parsley
Chili flakes
Extra virgin olive oil
The method: Sear the tuna hard in a very hot pan, just 30–45 seconds per side so it stays rare in the center, then rest and slice. In the same pan, build a quick sauce with garlic, capers, chili flakes, and cherry tomatoes, deglazed with a splash of white wine. Toss with the cooked linguine and a ladle of starchy pasta water until it clings, then top with the sliced tuna and a scattering of parsley just before serving.
The pairing: This one wants a Verdicchio — I love Socci Deserto Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi DOC Classico Superiore . Its almond-like bitterness and saline minerality play beautifully against the richness of the seared tuna and the acidity of the tomatoes. Plus, this particular expression of Verdicchio has an oily, plush texture to the palate that complements the fatty tuna really well.
Spaghetti alle Vongole con Bottarga
If you want something more traditionally Sardinian, this is the dish. Bottarga — salt-cured, pressed fish roe — is made in Bosa, a small town on Sardinia’s west coast, and it’s one of those ingredients that instantly transports me back to life on the island. Grated over spaghetti with clams, garlic, white wine, and olive oil, it adds a deep, briny, almost umami intensity that turns a simple clam pasta into something else entirely.
Here is a tried and true recipe from Giallo Zafferano to follow.
The pairing: A Sardinian Vermentino, specifically from La Contralta, is my go-to here. You could opt for whatever Vermentino you can get your hands on because the salinity, fresh citrus flavors, subtle herbal notes, and bitter almond finish really sing alongside this salty, umami-rich dish. I love La Contralta Vermentino wines especially because they have such pristine winemaking technique and the winery does a lot with various vessels (cement, steel tank, amphora, oak) that brings Vermentino into a whole different light.
But if you want to do something truly special, open one of the aged bottles of Vernaccia di Oristano if you can manage to find one. It’s an oxidative-style white (think notes of walnut, dried apricot, and a faint nuttiness that mirrors sherry more than it does a typical Italian white) and it’s an extraordinary match for the briny clams and salty, umami-rich bottarga. The wine’s own layered complexity meets the dish’s salinity and nuttiness note for note.
Grilled Fish
Orata, or sea bream, is my favorite fish to grill in summer. Stuff the cavity with aromatics like garlic, parsley, lemon, or olives, and let it cook whole over the fire or coals until the skin crisps and the flesh pulls easily from the bone.
Wine pairings for grilled orata:
Vermentino or Nuragus — my everyday choice, and what we’d usually crack open in Sardinia
Vernaccia di Oristano, for a special occasion (and, as above, a wine that does double duty with the vongole and bottarga if you’re serving both)
Falanghina, if you want something a little more aromatic
Nascetta or Timorasso, from Piemonte, if you’d rather end the meal on something more robust and structured
For red drinkers, a medium-bodied Etna Rosso or Ruché won’t overpower the fish the way a bigger red would
Fresh Vegetables, Instead of Salad
Skip the composed salad and just put the vegetables on the table. Tomatoes, cucumbers, maybe some fennel bulbs. Let everyone cut their own, sprinkle with salt, drizzle with good olive oil, and eat with their hands. It’s simple, it’s a little bit communal, and it’s exactly how we’d do it in Sardinia.
Or, since the grill is already going: slice zucchini and eggplant, char them, then dress with olive oil, fresh garlic, and chopped parsley while still warm. It’s a dish I associate specifically with Sardinian summers, and it somehow tastes better the longer it sits.
If you want something a little different from the traditional route, my citrus salad isn’t classically Italian, but it’s refreshing enough to earn a spot on the summer table anyway.
Dessert: Whatever Summer Fruit You Can Find
In Italy, dessert after a summer meal rarely means more than a plate of ripe melon. They’re green or yellow, oblong, reminiscent of a honeydew but somehow juicier and sweeter than anything you’ll find in a U.S. grocery store. Whatever’s ripest and in season does the job. And if you want a little more, a small scoop of gelato never hurts.
Digestivo
No Italian meal is complete without a digestivo to close it out. In Sardinia, that almost always means mirto, a liqueur made from myrtle berries that grow wild across the island. Though personally, I prefer the homemade kind. The mirto on store shelves tends to run too sweet.
Limoncello is the more familiar option if you can’t get your hands on mirto, but truthfully, my favorites were always the family’s own homemade concoctions rather than anything bottled commercially. Think basilico (made with basil), liquirizia (made with licorice), and corbezzolo (made from the fruit of the strawberry tree). I’m also partial to Branca Menta, the minty, slightly gentler sibling to the better-known Fernet-Branca. And then there’s always grappa, though to me, drinking that is a bit like drinking jet fuel.
The idea behind a digestivo is simple: something high in alcohol, built on bitter herbs, roots, or spices, that stimulates digestion and eases the feeling of having eaten and drunk a little too well. But really, it’s just as much about the ritual. One last drink, and an excuse to keep the conversation going a bit longer.
The Playlist
For your Italian summer soiree, here’s the Sip with Nik: Al Fresco Pours playlist on Spotify, all musica italiana.
What’s on your summer entertaining table this year? If you recreate a little taste of Italy at home, send me photos! I’d love to know what you cook up and what bottles you open.
Campari in my spritz? Yes, please!
We love a Cappelletti spritz! Great ideas!