At Casa Levitt there is no official Negroni Week, although we love the fact that there is a special week dedicated to honoring this cocktail of perfection. To be perfectly honest, Negronis in one form or another are a year round libation at our home. The mere presence of one has me fantasizing about sitting in the piazza experiencing La Dolce Vita. Negroni Sbagliato, you may ask…what is that about? Well, sbagliato translates to “mistaken” in English which refers to the lore about how the drink came to be.
The traditional Negroni is equal parts of gin, sweet vermouth and Campari and truth be told Mio Marito is the master mixologist where this is concerned; his recipe for the Il Negroni Perfecto was published in the early days of La Bella Sorella. Since that time he has experimented with different artisan vermouths and barrel aging this nectar from the Gods.
Sitting at a rooftop bar in Lecce last month with a dear friend we were re-introduced to the Negroni Sbagliato as a lighter version of the classic Negroni; heaven forbid we would over imbibe, the night was young and we had dinner plans. Prosecco replaces the traditional gin in a Negroni Sbagliato, giving the drink a bit of a fizz and of course a lower percent of alcohol. It is said that the Negroni Sbagliato is the result of a harried bartender accidentally using a spumante or sparking wine rather than gin. Chi sai…
With temperatures rising just about everywhere, a Negroni Sbagliato is quite refreshing. Naturally, don’t skip on the prosecco; our prosecco of choice is Prosecco Il Colle which is located between the municipalities of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, historically the best area for producing Glera grapes used to make this sparkling wine. We treasure our relationship with the Ceschin Family and are honored to be importing their wines to California.
Rather than including Fabri bitter cherries we use to garnish the classic Negroni, a single strip of orange peel gives the Negroni Sbagliato just the right amount of citrusy punch.
Come, join us and celebrate the Negroni every week of the year. Make yourself a Negroni Sbagliato to beat the summer heat and bring a little bit of the Italian Aperitivo hour to your life. Cin Cin…
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- 3 oz. Campari
- 3 oz. artisinal sweet red vermouth such as Carpano Antica Formula or Cocchi
- 3 oz. Prosecco, preferably Prosecco Il Colle
- 2 pieces of orange peel
- 2 large ice cubes
- Have two on the rocks glasses ready each with a large ice cube.
- Combine the Campari and vermouth in equal parts in each ice filled glass, stir
- Pour the prosecco into each glass so you have equal parts Campari, vermouth, and prosecco.
- Stir once gently to not loose the prosecco fizz, garnish each with a slice of the orange peel and serve.
- Cin cin...
I really like this idea! Negroni was my Dad’s favorite cocktail back in the day, but the gin really did pack a punch. A bit overpowering before dinner… so this “mistake” sounds to me like a masterstroke. Will be trying it soon1
I’m so glad Frank, the prosecco really does make a difference in terms of reducing the “punch”. With the long weekend ahead, I can imagine you poolside with one of these in hand.
Just made my first Negroni recently. I love this version and will give it a go. I need to refill my campari and vermouth supplies first.
It is so light and refreshing, give it a try; a nice treat during the holiday weekend. Mio Marito is quite the Italian cocktail master, we are now barrel aging as well.