You know scorpion bowls: communally shared, heavily boozed and sugared, hangovers biding their time inside every straw. These updated Apéritif Scorpion Bowls keep the fun and ditch the sting (ugh). All follow the main tenets of apéritif: low ABV, low effort, high reward. Serve these in that ceramic bowl your mom found at a garage sale, a regular large bowl, or a pitcher. If you’re taking them to go, these recipes all conveniently fit into a recently emptied 750 ml bottle.

　　

Ingredients

For a crowd:

12 ounces [360 ml] amaro, chilled

　　12 ounces [360 ml] sweet vermouth, chilled

　　6 to 8 dashes Angostura bitters

　　4 lemon peels

　　Sparkling water, chilled, for topping

　　

For a party of 1:

2 ounces [60 ml] amaro, chilled

　　2 ounces [60 ml] sweet vermouth, chilled

　　2 dashes Angostura bitters

　　Sparkling water, for topping

　　Lemon peel

　　

For a crowd:

Step 1

In a punch bowl or pitcher, combine the amaro, sweet vermouth, and bitters. Working one by one, hold the lemon peels by their long edges with the peel facing down into the bowl. Pinch the peel to express the citrus oils and drop the peel into the bowl. Serve in ice-filled punch or lowball glasses and top each drink with sparkling water just before serving.

　　

For a party of 1:

Step 2

In an ice-filled punch or lowball glass, combine the amaro, sweet vermouth, and bitters. Top with sparkling water. Hold the lemon peel by its long edges with the peel facing down into the glass. Pinch the peel to express the citrus oils, drop the peel into the glass, and serve.

　　Excerpted with permission from À Table: Recipes for Cooking and Eating the French Way © 2021 by Rebekah Peppler. Reprinted with permission by Chronicle Books.Buy the full book from Chronicle Books, Amazon, or Bookshop.