Negroni

A Negroni is an Italian cocktail, made of equal parts gin, vermouth rosso (red, semi-sweet), and Campari, generally served with ice, and commonly garnished with an orange slice or orange peel. It is considered an apéritif. In Italy a long drink of equal parts vermouth and Campari (but no gin), topped with soda and served over ice, has existed since the 1800s under the names Milano–Torino or Americano. The name Milano–Torino comes from the fact that bitters like Campari were traditionally popular aperitifs in Milan, while vermouth was the classic and beloved aperitif in Turin. The Negroni was created in Florence in 1919–20 by Count Camillo Negroni of Fiesole. In the 1920s, the count used to frequent the aristocratic Caffè Casoni in Via de’ Tornabuoni in Florence (the venue where the already existing Caffè Giacosa would later relocate), and, wanting to vary from his usual Americano aperitif, he asked the bartender to add a bit of gin instead of soda water, in honor of his stay in New York. The new cocktail became known as the “Americano in the style of Count Negroni,” that is, an Americano with an addition of gin, and it later took the count’s own name.