Aperitivo is the Italian habit of meeting for a light drink and something to snack on before dinner, a social ritual as much as a menu item.
The word comes, like the French apéritif, from the Latin verb aperire, to open: the idea is to open the appetite, not to close the night. Turin has a strong claim to the starting gun. In 1786 the herbalist Antonio Benedetto Carpano mixed wine with herbs and spices in his shop opposite the Royal Palace and created a vermouth, then sent a crate to King Vittorio Amedeo III, who liked it enough to adopt it at court.
Across Italian cities the custom became a fixture of the early evening, with olives and crisps on the counter and, in some bars, buffets generous enough to make dinner plans feel optional. The golden rule remains moderation: it is the prologue, not the plot.