The Negroni is dead — long live literally anything else…

Oh, well — it was nice while it lasted. But it wasn’t really, was it? Call us uncultured, but we never really were bowled-over by the old Negroni. Unfortunately for us, the bright red king of Italian aperitivos has been causing something of a stir these past few years, springing up on every cocktail menu from Bergamo to Bermondsey. A ‘renegronaissance’, if you like. But we don’t like — we don’t like at all.

And here’s why. We’re pretty sure that people only pretended to like the Negroni because other, cooler people told them they should. There’s no way, when Florentine bartender Fosco Scarselli first mixed the heinous thing into existence back in 1919, that he thought people would still be drinking them by the bucketload in All Bar One a century later. Yet drink them they did. Two summers ago, you could hardly move for glasses of the stuff. Vinegary, venomous Negronis being sloshed by the sloshed; everyone having a merry old time wincing their way through mouthful after medicinal mouthful. But then, last year, we finally began to wise up.

“We never really were bowled-over by the old Negroni…”

Menus suddenly started adding more and more ingredients to the classic Negroni line-up of Campari, vermouth and gin. These were sold as ‘fun twists’ on the traditional. But they weren’t. They were the beginning of the end. We were nudging out the Negroni with chocolate bitters and passionfruit syrup. It was a sweet uprising, a flavour revolution, a coup d’etat fuelled by Crème de Noyaux.

And we beat our senseless addiction. We upended the status quo, rinsed it out and refilled it with something that didn’t taste like battery acid mixed with melted plimsolls. The Negroni had fallen. But, with one cocktail cut down, which other drink was to take its place? What would be this summer’s signature sipper? To find out, we’ve rounded up, mixed together and poured out five pretenders to the Negroni throne. And the best thing about these cocktails? You don’t need to have had three already just to get through your first…

• Take two measures of dry gin, one measure of freshly squeezed lemon juice and a teaspoon of sugar syrup. Pour into a cocktail shaker with ice.
• Add a teaspoon of Triple Sec, and another of Campari Bitter. Shake well.
• Strain into a chilled Nick & Nora glass, and garnish with a lemon zest twist.

• Add one measure of Aperol, one measure of dry vermouth and one measure of gin to a cocktail shaker with ice.
• Shake well and strain into a chilled old-fashioned glass.
• Squeeze a lemon twist over the cocktail before serving.

• Add two measures of bourbon whisky, one measure of Martini Rosso and one measure of Campari Bitter to a mixing glass with ice.
• Stir the ingredients together and strain into an ice-filled old-fashioned glass.
• Garnish with an orange zest twist.

• Take one measure of gin, one measure of sweet vermouth and one measure of Cynar liqueur and pour them into a mixing glass.
• Stir the ingredients together, then pour into an old-fashioned glass over ice.
• Garnish with a lemon twist, and serve.

• Combine three measures of ruby red grapefruit juice, two measure of tequila and one measure of Aperol and add to a cocktail shaker with ice.
• Shake the ingredients together and fine strain into a chilled Collins glass.
• Garnish with a grapefruit zest twist.

More a Martini man? Allow Dukes Bar’s Alessandro Palazzi to show you how to mix the best…

Become a Gentleman’s Journal member. Find out more here.

Become a Gentleman’s Journal Member?

Like the Gentleman’s Journal? Why not join the Clubhouse, a special kind of private club where members receive offers and experiences from hand-picked, premium brands. You will also receive invites to exclusive events, the quarterly print magazine delivered directly to your door and your own membership card.

Click here to find out more