A Cocktail You Can’t Refuse: the Negroni

Celebrating National Cocktail Day and the 50th Anniversary of the Godfather with the Iconic Italian Aperativo

Today is the perfect day to enjoy that most quintessential of Italian cocktails—the Negroni, as today marks the 50th Anniversary of the cinematic release of the masterpiece that is The Godfather AND it also happens to be National Cocktail Day. When those two days collide, my friends, it’s time to grab the Campari!

The History of the Negroni

The year is 1919 and Count Negroni heads into his local watering hole, looking for something… different. He is accustomed to drinking an Americano—Campari, sweet vermouth, and club soda, but on this particular day, the club soda isn’t going to cut it. He asks the bartender for something stronger. (We’ve all had days like this… am I right?) Well, the bartender simply substitutes gin for the club soda, and voila! The Negroni is born.

Have you ever noticed how sometimes the best things in life are made in the same fashion as the Negroni? You’re set to make a certain recipe for dinner, for example, but you’re out of one of the ingredients, so you make a simple substitution and you end up with a creation even more glorious than the original. Now, you have a new family favorite and an origin story, to boot. And who doesn’t love an origin story?

My Negroni Origin Story

I found the Negroni in Las Vegas—the city whose bartenders have introduced me to many, many different libations. Prior to that, I was intrigued by Campari and had tried it with club soda, and to be honest… didn’t love it. I was commenting on this to a bartender and he poured a Negroni and passed it to me, ”try this,” he said. I did, and the rest, well, is history.

Flash forward to August, 2019, when I found myself in San Francisco for the American Bar Association yearly conference. My dad had given me several restaurant recommendations, one of which was Original Joe’s in North Beach. I walked from my hotel downtown, trudging up the hills and enjoying the splendor of that beautiful city, ending up at North Beach. That evening, I drank a Negroni at Original Joe’s on the 100th anniversary of the Negroni and it made the long walk well worth it.

It was at that moment that I realized the Negroni is a lot like life itself—it’s a little bitter, a little sweet, and gloriously complex.

How to Make a Negroni

Ready to watch The Godfather on this, the 50th Anniversary of its cinematic release and drink a Negroni while doing it? Well, here’s how. Grab your Campari, Sweet Vermouth, and Gin (I prefer a dry gin for Negronis, but to each her own…):

Classic Negroni:

1 oz Campari

1 oz Sweet Vermouth

1 oz Gin

Pour over ice, stir vigorously to mix, and then strain into a rocks glass with ice. Garnish with orange peel. Wasn’t that easy? (That’s another excellent feature of this classic Italian cocktail—it’s so easy to make!)

Maybe the Classic Negroni isn’t for you… perhaps you find Campari too bitter for your palate. That’s okay… there’s always the Unusual Negroni for you to try:

Unusual Negroni:

1 oz Aperol

1 oz Lillet Blanc

1 oz Gin

Make in the same fashion as the classic Negroni. Garnish with grapefruit peel (orange peel works mighty fine in this version, too!).

Happy National Cocktail Day and Happy Birthday to The Godfather. Cheers!