Ingredients: there is no Negroni without Campari
A Negroni can benefit from different gin and vermouth flavour profiles, but a Negroni should never be made without Campari. Campari is the sole ingredient in a Negroni that should never be changed, nor should it ever be subject to creative flair or interpretation. Without Campari, a Negroni wouldn’t be the classic cocktail that it is.

Vermouth: no other fortified or aromatised wine

There are many amazing aromatized wines and fortified aperitifs from Italy, France, Spain and many other countries. However, the perfect Negroni should only ever be made on a red, sweet, Italian-style vermouth, preferably with some ‘weight’ to it and enough spice to hold up against the Campari. We recommend small batch vermouths such as Cinzano 1757 or Cinzano Rosso.

Gin: make it a London Dry
Despite many bars substituting gin for aged Jamaican rum, small batch bourbon or reposado tequila, gin should always remain the base-spirit for a Negroni. Don’t be tempted to go overly fancy with your gin selection either – make it a London Dry gin with a good juniper and citrus presence and a floral character, such as Bulldog Gin.

Build it, do not shake it!
A perfectly poured trinity of Campari, gin and vermouth will deliver a perfectly balanced drink in terms of sweetness, bitterness and floral and herbal aromatics. However, as soon as this is ‘shaken’, this balance is completely lost, along with the flavour profile of the Negroni as well.

Instead, to make the perfect Negroni, once all of the ingredients are poured, they should be stirred with plenty of ice to add dilution and bring the temperature down. This creates a ‘bubble free’, velvety drinking experience. If shaken, the drink will become too cold, trap some of the flavours and lose the delicate aromatic nuances that have been created.

Orange wedge: do not flame an orange peel!
The original and perfect garnish for the Negroni is a nicely trimmed and sliced orange wedge. Many bartenders will also add a light cloud of expressed orange oils onto the surface of the Negroni, which makes for a fantastic addition to the experience. With this in mind, resist any temptation to flame the orange peel. Doing so adds burnt flavour to the surface of the Negroni, ruining the otherwise balanced flavours.

Some bartenders rub the skin of the orange peel over the rim of the glass, which we also don’t recommend as the orange peel retains some heavier and bitterer oils. Rubbing the orange skin over the glass rim will just be overkill, throwing out the balance of the drink.