The Negroni, for a Quiet Evening
Equal parts gin, vermouth and Campari — the most civilised way to end a day, served over a single large ice cube.
There are cocktails and then there is the Negroni — a drink that needs no occasion and tolerates no nonsense. Three ingredients, equal measure, stirred not shaken.
The secret, as ever, is the quality of each part. Use gin you would drink neat and vermouth you opened this month, not last.
Ingredients
- 30ml good London Dry gin
- 30ml sweet vermouth (such as Carpano Antica)
- 30ml Campari
- 1 large clear ice cube
- A strip of orange peel
Method
- 1
Combine the gin, vermouth and Campari in a mixing glass. Add a handful of ordinary ice and stir slowly for 20 seconds — long enough to chill and dilute, never to waterlog.
- 2
Strain into a tumbler over a single large ice cube. Express the orange oils over the surface by squeezing the peel, then drop it in. Drink before the ice has done its worst.
The Negroni is a template, not a rule. Prefer it drier? Add a splash more gin. Sweeter? A touch more vermouth. Make it yours until you no longer need to measure.
Drinks
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