Apricot syrup from fully ripened Vinschgau apricots
Alpe Pragas apricot syrup is a South Tyrolean fruit syrup made from fully ripened Vinschgau apricots, reduced with a 50% fruit content. No watery sugar water, but rather a dense apricot aroma that can be diluted 1:7 with water, sparkling wine, or Prosecco for a summer refreshment.
Apricot syrup from Alpe Pragas is a densely reduced fruit syrup from the Vinschgau valley in South Tyrol, in which the apricot takes center stage. At his workshop, Stefan Gruber fills 50% fruit into every 500 ml bottle, adding only sugar and a squeeze of lemon. Honey-sweet stone fruit needs nothing more to glow in the glass.
Honey-sweet, sun-warmed, full of stone fruit
Upon opening, the scent of ripe apricot blooms, warm and honey-sweet, as if you had just bitten into a sun-ripened fruit.
In the glass, this becomes a dense apricot aroma that lingers, fruity and rounded, with a fine acidity as a counterpoint. The Vinschgau apricot ripens on the warm, dry slopes of the valley, where the large temperature differences between day and night drive sugar and aroma into the fruit.
Finally, a subtle almond aroma comes through, as one knows it from the apricot kernel. This is exactly the depth that the fruit provides and which thin syrup lacks. One spoonful is enough, and the whole glass smells of summer.
The Vinschgau is considered one of the warmest and driest apricot valleys in the Alps, where stone fruit has been at home for generations. You can taste this origin in the glass: sun-ripened, spicy, concentrated, and far removed from watery supermarket apricots.
As lemonade, in an aperitif, or over vanilla ice cream
Mixed 1:7 with ice-cold mineral water, the apricot syrup becomes a crisp lemonade; with Prosecco, it makes an aperitif for the terrace.
However, it enjoys much more than just a glass. It finds its place over vanilla ice cream and rice pudding, in quark or semolina porridge, and a dash elevates any compote. It is also used in the kitchen: a splash in a vinaigrette for bitter leaf salad or a spoonful in a marinade for grilled chicken, where apricot and meat complement each other perfectly.
Those who want to place two varieties side by side can opt for the raspberry syrup; the entire range can be found among the Alpe Pragas syrups. In the refrigerator, the opened bottle keeps for several weeks, though honestly, it is usually empty quickly anyway.
Stefan Gruber's workshop in the Dolomites
In 1997, Stefan Gruber founded the small fruit workshop in the Prags Valley, at an altitude of about 1250 meters in the heart of the Dolomites. He was actually supposed to take over his parents' farm, but instead of livestock farming, he planted strawberries and spent months tinkering with a friend to perfect the fruit recipe.
The result was a standard that still applies today: prioritize plenty of fruit and minimal additives. The high fruit content of 50% makes the syrup economical; a splash goes further than with watery discount syrups, and Alpe Pragas was one of the first businesses in Italy to reduce its fruits so densely.
The apricots are harvested ripe and gently reduced, without artificial flavors, and are vegan and gluten-free. For Stefan Gruber, the fruit always comes first in taste, and you can taste that in every drop. If you would like more from South Tyrol, you will find it in the Alpe Pragas range, such as the matching apricot fruit spread.
Prosecco, soda, and a slice of orange
For a summery aperitif, add two tablespoons of apricot syrup to ice cubes, fill with well-chilled Prosecco, and add a small splash of soda. Garnish with a slice of orange, and the Apricot Spritz is ready.
Enjoyed pure over plain yogurt with a few chopped pistachios, it becomes a quick dessert. The apricot tastes clearest when well-chilled. That is how summer comes into the glass.
