Do you love a Negroni? How about an Aperol Spritz? The Americano is like the Negroni and Spritz had the perfect love child, and we all get to benefit from the pairing. The Americano takes the best of both of these cocktails and brings them together in a light, refreshing drink that you can sip all summer long. There are a ton of variations on the Americano, this one is the one that I serve at my house, but check out the pro tips after the recipe for some other options. A traditional Americano skips the gin, but I find it loses some of the balance and depth I love in a Negroni.
The Americano
Ingredients
- 1 OZ GIN (I LIKE LONDON DRY OR GRAY WHALE)
- 1 OZ CAMPARI
- 1 OZ SWEET VERMOUTH
- 1 OZ CLUB SODA
Directions
Pro Tips
- To make this a little lighter, you can skip the gin, and do equal parts Campari, vermouth, and club soda. This traditional Americano is a lower ABV cocktail that’s easy to batch and sip for an entire afternoon without feeling like an overindulgence.
- For a celebration, I love to pre-batch the first three ingredients (I usually do 2 cups of each), and as people arrive, I pour 2 oz of the mix into a champagne flute or coupe and top with sparkling wine. It’s an elevated spritz that won’t send everyone into a sugar coma.
- Consider trying a sustainable spirit like Gray Whale Gin. Gray Whale is small-batch and seven-times distilled. Its ultra-clean, vegan, gluten-free corn base takes you on a journey with every sip – imagine you are following the California coastline as you enjoy the botanicals. Additionally, 1% of all Gray Whale Gin sales are donated to Oceana, the largest organization in the world devoted to ocean conservation. Gray Whale Gin is 86 proof with an ABV of 43%.
