Negroni Week 2026 – Light the Way

For Negroni Week 2026, I created a drink that is loosely based on the original but incorporates a variety of additional flavours. The reason for that was, that I wanted to work with a lemon liqueur from Faude. This required a bunch of changes to balance the drink.

The recipe for this Limoncello style liqueur comes from Florian Faude’s mother-in-law. The Sicilian lemons are peeled by hand and left to macerate in homemade alcohol. The final liqueur has an ABV of 30%.

Italy in a bottle

When tasting the Faude Lemon Liqueur you instantly get that typical essential lemon oil flavour. This is combined with fruity notes that remind me of freshly squeezed lemon juice. Beyond these initial flavours, I detected a hint of florals, as well as some earthy notes. The liqueur is obviously sweet, but the other aromas balance this.

Artichokes and smoke

Since lemon liqueur has a powerful flavour, I decided to pair it with similarly strong flavours. This time, I opted for a mezcal base and replaced the Campari with Cynar. It’s important to be careful with the amount of sweetness in this recipe. Fortunately, the Faude Vermouth is quite dry.

Overall, I really enjoyed the ‘Light the Way’. The final drink tastes like more than just the sum of its parts. All the flavours work perfectly together. I was especially intrigued by the subtle smokiness, the hint of bitterness as well as the lingering citrus flavours.

*The fact that I received a product reviewed in this article for free, did not – in any way – influence the rating of said product. I received the liqueur for free from Faude.