If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a million times – our Negroni Club members are some of the most sophisticated people around. The vibe is always right, the glassware chilled, the music perfectly paired, and the cubes large. They know a cocktail this correct should be celebrated, reveled in, and every September when Negroni Week comes back around again the aperitivo hour playlist and charcuterie boards are freshened up, and the thirty seconds to stirred excellence countdown begins. Of course, sophisticated doesn’t mean staid, our variations that have ventured furthest afield have been amongst the most popular.
In honor of the holiday, we kept things relatively classic, with one tart twist. In place of traditional vermouth, this Negroni is mixed up with a fresh and juicy cherry liqueur, made at the Leopold Brothers distillery in Denver CO. One of the first modern craft distilleries, they had originally set up shop in Michigan, and preserving that states sweet and tart Montmorency cherries in spirit form was an instant classic. A Good Foods award winner, made with real fruit and no artificial preservatives, it’s one of the lightest bodied liqueurs in the shop – to be honest we’ve enjoyed it all on its own before, and will again. And just like vermouth, this one keeps best in the fridge once opened, and consumed in 4-5 months, since the fruit will naturally oxidize over time.
Perhaps not surprisingly, Leopold’s Aperitivo is a great companion. Among the very first Campari-esque spirits to be made in the US, it remains relatively close to Campari in profile, with a generous bitter thanks to gentian root. It is also less sweet than the original, with grapefruit peel and distilled coriander for more of a citrus pop, and is naturally colored with cochineal.
So how do we achieve a cocktail with the depth of a classic Negroni, without the herbal undertones of vermouth? California’s own Wilder Gin. Distilled with wild-harvested, native California botanicals including sagebrush, purple sage, bay, yerba santa, pixie mandarin peel, and chuchupate. This dynamic mix of the wild and the cultivated bursts with fresh aromas, like taking a walk through the mountains of the central coast. A uniquely perfect gin in this trio, accentuating the Aperitivo’s bitter heart, while anchoring it with savory complexity.
