Negroni
Equal parts gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth — bitter, botanical, endlessly rearrangeable.
- Expressed orange peel
- Large single cube + brief stir
- Sweet vermouth (30 ml)
- Campari (30 ml)
- Gin (30 ml)poured first
- Empty rocks glass
How to make it
- Add gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth to a rocks glass over a large ice cube.
- Stir briefly (10–15 seconds) with a bar spoon to combine and chill.
- Express a wide orange peel over the drink and drop it in.
The history
In 1919 Count Camillo Negroni walked into Bar Casoni in Florence and asked bartender Fosco Scarselli to strengthen his Americano — an aperitivo of Campari, sweet vermouth, and soda — by replacing the soda with gin. The Negroni is that request, poured verbatim.
The drink went international in the 1950s and 60s but became a genuine global classic only after Campari's ubiquity in the modern cocktail revival post-2005. Today it is the most-ordered bitter cocktail in the world.
Because its structure is equal parts spirit + bitter + sweet vermouth, the Negroni template has spawned a large family: Boulevardier (bourbon), White Negroni (Suze + Lillet), Old Pal (rye + Campari + dry vermouth), and countless bar riffs.
Common mistakes
- Aperol instead of Campari
Aperol has half Campari's bitterness and more sugar. The result is a different, sweeter drink — a fine aperitivo, but not a Negroni.
- Over-diluting
A Negroni is meant to be strong and bracing. Long stir times and small ice cubes wash it out. Brief stir, large cube.
- Light gin
Contemporary soft, floral gins can disappear against Campari. Use a juniper-forward London Dry so the gin can hold its ground.
Variations
- Boulevardier
Bourbon instead of gin. Slightly heavier build (30 ml Campari, 30 ml sweet vermouth, 45 ml bourbon) balances the sweetness.
- White Negroni
45 ml gin, 22 ml Suze (gentian liqueur), 22 ml Lillet Blanc. Drier, more herbal, straw-colored.
- Sbagliato
Replace the gin with prosecco. 'Sbagliato' means 'mistaken' — allegedly a bartender's accident that stuck.
Frequently asked
- Do I have to stir it?
- Yes. Even a brief stir chills the drink and integrates the three ingredients; without it the Campari sits heavy at the bottom.
- Which gin?
- A juniper-forward London Dry (Beefeater, Tanqueray, Sipsmith). Softer contemporary gins get lost against Campari.
- Rocks or up?
- Traditionally on the rocks. Served up is a stylistic choice, not a mistake — but the drink was designed to open up slowly as it dilutes.
- Can I batch it?
- Yes — equal parts scale trivially. Add water equal to ~15% of total volume, keep cold, pour over a large cube.