[May] Detailed Negroni Cocktail Review 2025
Negroni Cocktail Reviews 2025: The Negroni is a classic cocktail made with equal parts of gin, red sweet vermouth, and Campari.
It is usually served over ice in a short glass and topped with a slice or twist of orange.
The Negroni is known as a drink that people enjoy before a meal to help build up their appetite.
The drink is most closely linked to Italy, where it became popular in the 1950s.
However, the exact story of where it first came from is still not fully known. Similar drinks were written about in French cocktail books in the late 1920s.
Even earlier, in the 1800s, Italian bars were already serving a drink called the Americano, which mixed vermouth, Campari, and soda water.
Some stories say that a drink called the “Negroni” was made in Florence around 1919, but those early versions were not exactly like the Negroni we know today.
Over time, the mix of Campari’s bitter taste, the gin’s herbal flavors, and the sweet vermouth created a balanced and stylish drink.
Today, the Negroni is enjoyed all over the world.
Its bold, bitter-sweet taste continues to attract both cocktail lovers and people who just enjoy a good drink.
Negroni Cocktail Ingredients List
Campari
Gin
Orange slice or twist (for garnish)
Negroni Cocktail Variations
One version, the Aperol Negroni, uses Aperol instead of Campari. Aperol is lighter and more citrusy, so this version tastes softer.
The Dutch Negroni replaces the usual gin with Jenever, a Dutch spirit made with juniper. It gives the drink a slightly sweet and malty taste.
In Italy, there’s a fun twist called the Negroni Sbagliato, which means “mistaken Negroni.” It swaps out gin for sparkling wine or Prosecco, making it fizzy and refreshing.
The Negroscan, made in New Hampshire, uses akvavit (a Scandinavian spirit) instead of gin. This gives the drink herbal and spiced flavors.
The Agavoni or Tegroni replaces gin with tequila, adding a smoky and earthy taste.
The White Negroni is a modern version that uses gin, Lillet Blanc, and Suze, creating a light and slightly bitter drink.
The Unusual Negroni uses gin, Aperol, and Lillet Blanc for a lighter and more floral flavor.
During the 2007 financial crisis, Italian bankers in London made a version with some orange juice and called it the Negroni Malato, which means “sick Negroni.”
The Pisco Negroni uses pisco, a grape spirit from South America, for a fruity and aromatic twist.
The National Negroni includes Chilean herbal liqueur Araucano instead of gin, adding strong herbal flavors.
Lastly, the Negroski uses vodka in place of gin, making the drink cleaner and crisper.
All these creative versions show how the Negroni can be changed in fun ways while still keeping its balance and unique style.
Also, check the Bloody Mary Cocktail Review 2025.
Negroni Cocktail Tasting Notes
Aromas
The Negroni Cocktail has a special mix of smells.
The fresh scent of juniper comes together with the tangy smell of orange peel.
Beneath that, there’s a soft touch of spice, making the overall scent balanced and welcoming.
Taste
The Negroni cocktail has a strong, slightly bitter taste with hints of orange peel, juniper, and herbs.
Finish
The Negroni cocktail has a long, dry aftertaste with a nice, bitter flavor. It leaves a lasting herbal taste that adds to the overall experience.
Negroni Cocktail History
The exact origin of the Negroni cocktail is not fully known.
Over time, different stories have mixed the details of the drink’s recipe and its name.
Research by Wondrich (2019) and Difford suggests that today’s Negroni likely started in France in the 1920s.
It was a short, American-style drink, similar to others like the Old Pal and the Boulevardier.
These types of cocktails became popular in the 1930s and 1940s and were often made using a 2:1:1 mix and called “Campariete.”
Later, in the late 1940s, the name “Negroni” started appearing.
It might have come from a different Italian drink made with vermouth and soda, with small amounts of Campari and gin.
It could also have been a version of the Milano–Torino or the Americano, which were made with equal parts vermouth and Campari, plus a bit of gin and soda.
Over time, people’s tastes changed. By the 1950s, the Negroni had become well known as a drink made with equal parts gin, vermouth, and Campari, served over ice with no soda.
This change shows how the Negroni has grown and how different places and cultures helped shape the drink we know today.
Negroni Cocktail Technique
The official IBA recipe for a classic Negroni says to make the drink by pouring the ingredients directly over ice in a short glass (like a rocks or old-fashioned glass).
It is usually finished with a slice of orange on top.
This is similar to how drinks like the Old Fashioned or Spritz are served, but without the soda.
Still, bartenders and cocktail fans often like to add their own twist.
A common change, especially outside of Italy, is using a piece of orange or lemon peel instead of an orange slice.
This gives the drink a fresh citrus smell and taste.
Another popular method is to stir the drink with ice first, then either pour it over new ice or serve it in a chilled glass with no ice.
This changes how the drink feels in your mouth and makes it look nicer.
Even with these changes, the heart of the Negroni stays the same—equal parts gin, vermouth, and Campari.
The way it’s served or garnished may be a little different, but the strong, slightly bitter flavor remains.
These small updates help make the Negroni a classic drink that still feels fresh and interesting.
Negroni Cocktail Recipe
The Negroni cocktail has an interesting history, shaped by different cultures and changing over time.
The first known version with the equal mix of Campari, gin, and Italian vermouth (the 1:1:1 ratio) was found in a 1929 French cocktail book called Alimbau & Milhorat, where it was called “Campari Mixte.”
It was made with equal parts of each ingredient, shaken with ice, and served with a lemon zest.
This was closer to an American cocktail style than the modern Italian Negroni, which is served over ice with an orange slice.
Another similar version from the same year, found in a Paris book called Thenon, was called “Camparinete” and used a 2:1:1 ratio of gin, vermouth, and Campari.
This recipe was linked to Albert from the Chatham Hotel bar and used Cora vermouth with a lemon twist.
In the 1930s and 1940s, similar recipes were shared in cocktail books in the US, France, and Spain, often credited to Albert, with small changes in the proportions or how it was made.
Sometimes it was shaken and served up (without ice), and it was sometimes called the “Negroni-Cocktail,” like in the 1949 book Brucart, which used a 2:1:1 Campari-heavy mix.
Interestingly, no Italian cocktail books before the 1940s mentioned the Negroni by name or described the classic mix of gin, vermouth, and Campari.
The first known Italian recipe appeared in Gandiglio’s 1947 book, where it was served as a long drink with soda water and orange peel, similar to the Americano, but different in its structure.
Another variation, named “Asmara o Negroni” after the city of Asmara, was made with Gordon’s gin, white Grassotti vermouth, and a few drops of Campari, shaken and served in a cocktail glass with orange peel.
By 1953, a version more like today’s Negroni appeared in the UKBG guide, where it was stirred and served with a lemon twist.
The Negroni’s journey from a French idea to an Italian classic wasn’t straightforward; it evolved with input from bartenders, cocktail books, and cultural exchanges over many years.
Negroni Cocktail Culture
The first mentions of a drink like the Negroni can be found in travel stories by English writers who visited Italy and the Mediterranean.
They described a long drink made with vermouth, soda, and small amounts of Campari, gin, and sometimes Angostura bitters.
This drink was similar to a vermouth-based spritz. The name “Negroni” was first mentioned by Orson Welles in 1947 in a letter to the Coshocton Tribune while he was in Rome working on Cagliostro.
He famously said, “The bitters are excellent for your liver, the gin is bad for you. They balance each other.”
More detailed descriptions came later in books like Footloose in Italy (1950) by Horace Sutton and Tangerine House (1956) by Rupert Croft-Cooke.
Sutton described making the drink by shaking a bit of Angostura bitters over ice in a large glass, adding a teaspoon of Campari, a glass of vermouth, a splash of gin, lemon peel, and topping it off with soda water.
Over time, the Negroni became more popular because of its perfect balance of bitter, sweet, and fresh flavors.
It quickly became a classic Italian drink, known for its simplicity and bold taste, and became a favorite in bars around the world.
