Like all good stories should, the one about the Negroni’s origin involves rakish Italian nobility. Most accounts credit the recipe to one Count Negroni, a swashbuckling proto-boho who reportedly spent time as a rodeo cowboy in the United States. Compounding his wild ways, legend has it that back at a bar in Italy in 1919, he asked for a something like an Americano, but boozier. Swap gin for soda water, and presto, the Negroni. This version, adapted from London bartender Wayne Collins’ riff, turns the original on its head substituting floral Lillet for sweet vermouth and gentian-based Suze for the bitter twinge of Campari.
White Negroni
The fairer Negroni.
Ingredients
Serving: 1
- 1 1/2 ounces gin
- 3/4 ounce Suze
- 1 ounce Lillet Blanc
Garnish: lemon peel
Directions
- Add all ingredients to a mixing glass.
- Add ice and stir until chilled.
- Strain into a chilled coupe or cocktail glass if serving up, or over ice into a rocks glass if preferred.
- Garnish with a lemon peel.