Name: Mango Spritz Cocktail
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 1 cup sugar; 1 cup water; 4 cinnamon sticks; 1 fresh mango; 2 ounces cinnamon simple syrup; 3 tablespoons water; ½ cup crushed ice; 4 sprigs fresh basil; 4-6 ounces chilled prosecco; Mango slices, for garnish

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

This post is sponsored by the National Mango Board

There is absolutely nothing better than a chilled and bubbly summertime spritz! This summer, I’m enjoying a Mango Spritz made with fresh mango, cinnamon simple syrup, fresh basil, and crisp prosecco. The flavors in this cocktail are sweet, warm, and fresh; it’s the perfect pre-dinner treat.

One of the reasons why I love this Mango Spritz is because I can enjoy this cocktail year-round. After all, mangos are always in season. There are six main varieties of mangos available at different times of the year that offer a unique flavor and texture.

The six main mango varieties to look for in your local produce section:

1. Honey (originally Atalufo)

Peak availability: March – July

Honey mangos are sweet and sour with a tropical and peach aroma. They are vibrant yellow, smooth, and have firm flesh.

2. Francis

Peak availability: May – June

Francis mangos are sweet and fruity with peach and tropical fruit aroma. They are bright yellow with green overtones and the texture is soft and juicy.

3. Haden

Peak availability: March-May

Haden mangos are sweet and sour with a slightly bitter after taste with tropical fruit and peach notes. These mangos are bright red with green and yellow overtones and small white dots with firm flesh.

4. Keitt

Peak availability: March – April, August, and September

Keitt mangos are sweet, fruity, and very popular in Asian cultures. Their texture is firm and juicy with high citrus notes.

5. Kent

Peak Availability: January, February, and December

Kent mangos are sweet with hints of sour notes with peach and tropical fruit aroma. The texture is juicy with tender flesh.

6. Tommy Atkins

Peak availability: March – July

Tommy Atkins mangos are the most widely grown commercial variety coming into the United States. They are tart with sweet notes with small hints of tropical fruit and citrus.

Learn more about additional mango varieties on Mango.org.

Ripeness

Mango can be enjoyed at all different levels of ripeness that contribute to the versatility of the fruit across a variety of recipes. However, it’s important to understand how to manage ripeness to achieve the desired texture and taste in your dishes. Each mango variety has a slightly different color with spots of green or red so do not use color as a guide to determine ripeness.

Here are some tips on ripening and storing your mangos:

Keep unripe mangos at room temperature. They don’t need to be refrigerated before they are ripe.
You can speed up ripening by placing them in a paper bag at room temperature.
Once the mangos are ripe, you can place the whole mango in the refrigerator for up to 5 days to slow down the ripening process.
Mangos can be peeled, cubed, and placed in an airtight container in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for up to six months.
To check and see if a mango is fully ripe, give a mango a gentle squeeze to see if it gives slightly when pressed.

You can learn more about ripeness and storing on Mango.org.

Cutting

Cutting a mango may seem a little intimidating at first but it’s a lot easier than you might think and all you need is a sharp knife. Mangos have one long flat seed in the middle, so you will want to cut vertically on each side of the mango seed when cutting into it. Once you have cut around the seed, you can slice the flesh of the mango into slices or a grid without breaking the skin, then simply scoop the mango out. You can learn more about cutting mango here. For this recipe, I cut my mango into cubes and scooped the chunks into the blender. My mangos were firm enough for me to cut even slices to use as garnish.

Nutrition

In addition to mangos being sweet, fruity, and versatile, they are full of health-promoting nutrients and bioactive compounds. A 3⁄4 cup of mango provides 50% of your daily vitamin C, 8% of your daily vitamin A and 8% of your daily vitamin B6. Mangos are also a good source of folate (15% of the daily value) and copper (15% DV), which is essential for collagen development. Mangos not only contribute valuable nutrients and minerals but they’re also classified as a low glycemic food, which can help manage blood sugar levels, according to the American Diabetes Association. This superfruit is not only delicious and nutritious in beverages and sweet recipes but mangos add beautiful tropical flavor to several savory dishes.

How to Make a Mango Spritz

Serving – 1 cocktail

Prep time – 5 minutes

Step 1

In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the sugar and water and bring to a boil until the sugar dissolves. Add in the cinnamon sticks, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Step 2

Remove the saucepan from the heat and strain the syrup into a heat-proof container. Allow the syrup to cool before using.

Step 3

Using a sharp knife cut the mango on both sides and into chunks using the method described above then scoop the mango into a blender. Pour in the cinnamon simple syrup and water, then blend on low until the puree is smooth.

Step 4

Add the ice to a wine or spritz glass, add in the basil, and spoon 3 tablespoons of the mango puree into the glass. Top with the chilled prosecco and garnish with 1 or 2 slices of mango.

Mango Spritz Cocktail