Into the Red – Barth Pinot

I am always late to the party. In this case, I missed Negroni week with my second post which I especially prepared for this occasion. I made a Negroni variation I had in mind for a long time now. Well, better late than never!

First, a quick look at the sparkling wine I used to make the ‘In the Red’: The Barth Pinot Sparkling Wine is an exception to the otherwise low in quality category of red sparkling wine. Mark Barth only uses pinot noir grapes which he ferments for three to four days on the mash. The base wine for the ‘Sekt’ ages for a whole year in oak barrels. For the second fermentation the wine lies on the yeast for 90 months.

Red fruits, spices and umami

I already enjoyed the Barth Pinot Sparkling Wine on its own! You get all the flavours you would expect from a high-quality pinot noir, but with additional carbonation. I tasted a lot of red fruits, some spices e.g. vanilla as well as hints of umami notes. You really have to be careful, the wine really is dangerously delicious.

Overproof gin and some absinthe

As always, it is a bit of a stretch to call this one a Negronivariation. However, in contrast to some other variations out there, this one at least has all the three basic elements: gin, bitter liqueur and a wine. To counter the lack of ‘herbal’ notes when using the sparkling pinot noir, I added some absinthe. Oh, and I went for a slightly overproof gin, too. To enhance the vanilla notes of the Barth Pinot, I added two dashes of Licor 43.

The ‘Into the Red’ starts with typical Negroni vibes, but the sparkling pinot noir soon takes over. You get winey and berry notes, supported by a subtle vanilla flavour. The gin nicely contrasts that and makes sure that the drink does not become too mellow. In the end, I am quite pleased with this variation and also that I can use it for the Nude Glass Mixology Competition.