Negroni Week 2022 – More Variations

So far I have written about the classic Negroni and its variations from other barkeepers. So, here are two variations from myself. While the first one shows how I would prepare your Negroni if you would be my guest, the second one takes everything a bit further. Some even would say too far…

My friend and fellow Drinkstagrammer Matthias Soberon summed it up perfectly how to make a great Negroni: Use more gin and blend your vermouths. Well, I did both in my “House Negroni”. For the gin, I almost always go for the Gin Eva. Its orange flavours in combination with classic gin notes, just work beautifully in a Negroni. Furthermore, I blened the Mancino Vermouth Rosso (50 %) with the spicy Yzaguierre Reserve (40 %) and a bit of Manino Chinato (10 %).

Same, same, but different

However, I also went a bit further and replaced the Campari which is fine in Negronis. Some time ago I did a red bitter blind tasting and the Bitter del Ciglista was even better in a Negroni. Furthermore, I added a bit of Mandarin & Orange bitters as well as a dash of saline solution. The latter really brings the whole drink together.

*Mix 50 % Mancino Vermouth Rosso, 40 % Yzaguierre Reserve and 10 % Manino Chinato.

Apart from the Gin Eva working perfectly in the Negroni, the Bitter del Ciclista adds a more balanced but still pronounced bitterness. As Matthias Soberon mentioned in his post on Negroni variations, the saline solution dampens the bitterness a bit. To counter that a bit I also added a few dashes of the excellent Bob’s Mandarin & Orange Bitters. All in all, my “House Negroni” is a very balanced, yet complex while still remaining true to the original.

Way too many ingredients

Well, I cannot quite tell you how I came up with the recipe for the “Royal Blue” and if you could still call this a Negroni. However, I thought to add complementary notes to the Hayman’s Royal Dock Gin. When I reached for a citrus eau de vie, my eyes fell on the Muehle 4 Cedro Eau de Vie. Furthermore, I added a bit of juniper spirit from Eversbusch. In the end, what could be better than a splash of champagne to round everything off.

The “Royal Blue” starts with classic Negroni notes, but soon a lot of citrus notes from the eau de vie and the bitters take over. The champagne adds some winey notes and of course a nice effervescence. A word of caution, the drink is quite strong and when served straight-up there is also no additional dilution. However, in my opinion this is a great way to end Negroni Week.