Negroni became our love from the first sip, and we immediately started experimenting with Negroni cocktail recipes to make it perfect for a given time of the day!
We enjoy it in summer and other seasons. The best time for Negroni is before a meal, of course.
Negroni Cocktail Story
From a cafe in Florence to every bar in the US!
The story of the Negroni cocktail begins in 1919 at the Caffè Casoni in Florence. It is believed that Count Camillo Negroni invented the drink when he ordered an Americano made with gin in place of the usual soda water. He liked it so much that soon, the Negroni family founded the Negroni distillery, which produced a ready-to-drink version of the cocktail, which they called Antico Negroni 1919.
In 1947 Orson Welles made one of the first documented remarks about the cocktail. He tried one while on location in Rome and commented to the Coshocton Tribune, “The bitters are excellent for your liver, the gin is bad for you. They balance each other.”
Negroni These Days
Gradually, a revival of gin and bitters in cocktail culture led to greater access to these ingredients, which led to more Negronis on cocktail menus.
Recently, we walked into a bar in Portland, where we couldn’t find a decent wine on a shelf, and even the tables were not cleaned in time. We had doubts about staying there. However, when we ordered Negroni, we got the classic Negroni we expected!
In 2013, Campari collaborated with alcohol publication Imbibe to create “Negroni Week,” during which mixologists and bartenders compete to create the best version of the drink.
We were not too much into cocktails when we learned about Negroni and decided to try it for the first time. Today, it is one of our favorites. We certainly understand why bartenders create so many versions of it worldwide.
Negroni Cocktail Recipes
Wine Swinging Basic Negroni
The Negroni is one of the easiest cocktails to make at home! Made with one part each of gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth.
It becomes even better when we add the right vermouth!
Here is how we make it:
- 1 oz Tanqueray gin
- 1 oz Campari
- 1 oz Dopo Teatro Cocchi Vermouth Amaro
Shake with ice briefly and pour over a large cube of ice in a double rocks glass.
We tried making this cocktail many times, but only when we purchased Cocchi Vermouth Amaro, we felt we found our Negroni.
It is a rare “evening vermouth” and was called After Theater for the Piedmontese tradition of drinking a small cup of fresh vermouth accompanied by a lemon zest in the evening, perhaps after attending some performances in one of the historic theaters of the town.
To us, this vermouth makes all the difference!
Negroni Light
Or, Grapefruit Negroni.
If you want to skip a heavy spirit part for whatever reason, we recommend making Negroni without gin. Instead, add the Grapefruit liquor, but pay attention to the proportions. Too much of Pamplemousse can overpower all the flavors in the cocktail.
Here is how we make it:
- 1 oz Campari
- 1 oz Lillet Rose
- 0.75 oz Chocci Doppo Teatro
- 0.25 oz Pamplemousse
Also, try Cappeletti Vino Aperetivo instead of Campari. We described it in Northwest Sunrise recipe.
How do you make your Negroni?