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Cocktail lovers are well aware of the resurgence of the Negroni and its many variations
(like another of my favorites, the Boulevardier). The classic Negroni (it even has a book dedicated
to it) has only three ingredients: Campari, Gin, and sweet Vermouth, mixed
at a 1:1:1 ratio, while the ratios in the Boulevardier may vary a bit depending
on the type of Whiskey. The two
ingredients that all of these variations have in common are Campari Bitter Liqueur
and sweet Vermouth.
Both of these venerable cocktails have been around awhile. The
Negroni was named after Count Camillo Negroni of Firenze, who was in a rut, ordering the same cocktail (the
ubiquitous Americano) every day. Legend has it that one day in 1919, Negroni
was looking for something a little stronger than his favorite aperitivo, and that bartender Fosco
Scarselli at Caffè Casoni replaced
the standard soda water in the Americano with Gin. What a pleasanr surprise. The Boulevardier’s origins may be shrouded in
mystery, but it made its first appearance in print in 1927’s Barflies and
Cocktails by Harry McElhone (of Harry’s
New York Bar in Paris), less than a decade later.
Just like the Count, every so often, one gets in the mood
for something different. Due to a lack
of bar discipline, a bottle of Campari and one of Tequila were side by side on
the bar: interesting… A little playtime
at the bar produced evidence that the classic Negroni proportions of 1:1:1
produced a pretty nice cocktail. The
next step was a little web research. It
turns out that this was not a new idea, but the posts that turned up proved it
was a good one. The best recipe seems to
be one credited to German cocktailian Bastian Heuser by the first author to
record it in a cocktail book, Robert Hess, who did so in The
Essential Bartender’s Guide. Hess called it an Agavoni (yeah, I know, I decided
to try Campari Olé). A key added ingredient
in this Negroni variation was the addition of Orange Bitters. So give the
following recipe a try, and let us all know how you like it, or try your own recipe.
Campari Olé
- 1 oz Familia Camarena Silver Tequila
- 1 oz Campari
- 1 oz Carpano Antica Vermouth (sweet)
- 1 dash Angostura Orange Bitters
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass half full of cracked
ice. Stir briskly until nice and
cold. Strain into an Old Fashioned glass
with ice (or, if you’re feeling lazy, just build it in the glass). Garnish with twist of orange peel (Hess calls
for a grapefruit twist).
