L'Italo-Americano

www.italoamericano.org 10 THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 2017 L'Italo-Americano FRANCESCA BEZZONE I have lived for fifteen years outside of Italy and had to endure the oh-so-harsh reality my beloved adoptive country k n e w n e x t t o n o t h i n g a b o u t aperitivo: the ritual, the food and, crucially, the drinks. Honed by years of aperitivo practice in the elegantly baroque squares of Turin, once abroad I had often to tell bartenders how to make my drink of choice: the aristocratic, zesty, bitterly pleasant Negroni. A bit of America enters my little story: the only foreign per- son I met during my years away f r o m I t a l y w h o k n e w a b o u t Negroni was a smart - and very talented - Broadway actress who ensured me Negroni "was all the rage" among the artsy crowds of the Big Apple. One really can tell there is Italian blood running in America's body. America, in fact, had already sworn her love to Negroni in the 1950s, when it became one of the most popular d r i n k s i n " t r a n s i t i o n b a r s " (lounges in train stations and air- p o r t s ) a l l o v e r t h e c o u n t r y . O r s o n W e l l s l o v e d i t a n d Tennessee Williams mentioned it in one of his novellas: clearly the fiery-gold, Mediterranean tasting stuff had quite a follow- ing. For all of you not familiar with it, Negroni is a very aro- matic and fresh mixed drink, perfectly balancing three ingre- dients: red vermouth, Campari and gin, served on ice with half a s l i c e o f o r a n g e a n d s o m e lemon peel. Not for the faint hearted, or those who cannot h a n d l e w e l l t h e i r a l c o h o l , N e g r o n i h a s t h e d e e p , b i t t e r aroma of herbs and the sweet tang of gin and citrus fruits. Fresh and uncompromising, it is rigorously served in heavy tum- blers filled with ice and its gold- en red color, reminiscent of the most intense orange tourmalines, makes you feel like you're hold- ing a drink fit to appear in the hand of a roaring '20s party goer. À la Great Gatsby, just to give you the idea. Truth is my comparison is not purely poetic license, it mirrors the truth. If my lyrical descrip- tion of the many beauties of Negroni has not been enough to convert you into a fan, its novel- like history will. Fiesole, 1868. Italy was a young kingdom of only seven y e a r s w h e n c o u n t C a m i l l o Negroni was born. Eccentric, creative and charming polyglot, count Negroni soon became a fixture in Florence's artistic and cultural circles. He was already a well established figure of the Florentine jet-set when, some- times between 1919 and 1920, he asked young Fosco Scarselli, bartender at Caffé Casoni, a trendy and elegant bar-boutique in Florence's town center, to give an extra twist to a popular drink o f t h o s e y e a r s , t h e M i l a n o - Torino (today known as, alas, Americano, in honor of Italian- A m e r i c a n l e g e n d P r i m o Carnera). Count Negroni was not too fond of the Milano-Torino's sim- ple mixture of Campari (made in Milan) and red vermouth (made in Turin): he thought something was missing. A seasoned travel- er and foreign cultures connois- seur, he suggested to give the drink a bit of a British accent, with the addition of a dash o gin. He also asked for a slice of orange in it, so that he could recognize his drink when served at the table. Lo and behold, the firs Negroni was born: 1/3 of r e d v e r m o u t h ( v e r y l i k e l y M a r t i n i R o s s o o r v e r m o u t h Carpano), 1/3 of Campari and 1/3 of Gordon's gin, apparently chosen in honor of the count's friend Gordon Cummings. A dash of soda, the orange slice, the lemon zest. Simple, perfect, unchanged almost one hundred years later: the original, aristocratic Negroni remains the most loved. This does not means, however, inter- esting variations on the theme have not been created: the first of a certain relevance was creat- ed in the Dolce Vita famous R o m e o f 1 9 5 0 , y e a r o f t h e Jubilee. Legend has it that a car- dinal was often spotted at the Hotel Excelsior for his aperiti- vo, where a bartender decided to create a cocktail in his honor. Inspired by the red of cardinals' vestments, he substituted red vermouth with dry, concocting the first known variation of a Negroni, the Cardinale. Another famous variant was created, entirely by mistake, in 1970s Milan, at the bar Basso where Mirko Stocchetto grabbed the wrong bottle while preparing a Negroni, adding spumante brut instead of gin. The drink, which is still known today as Negroni Sbagliato, was a hit and remains one of its most popular varia- tions. Some other Negroni to try? The Negroni Seal, with double vermouth, the popular Negroski, with vodka instead of gin, the T u r i n e s e R e d h u v b e r , m a d e sweeter with a tad of orange, or the Genoese Negroni del Babbo, w i t h g i n , C a m p a r i , r e d v e r - mouth, orange juice and angos- tura. As nice as they may be, none of them can, in my humble opin- ion, beat the Gatsby-like charm and impeccable taste of an origi- nal, count approved, Negroni. Simple, perfect, unchanged almost one hundred years later: the original, aristocratic Negroni remains the most loved LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE Give me a Negroni! The history of one of Italy's most iconic drinks

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