Greetings! It's Cocktail Hour at the Intentional Table!

Oh, how sweet it is! The holiday season has landed with a 'thunk', and ready or not, here we go! I was going to keep on my riff of bar building and mixers, etc. But that is mechanics, and well, I simply feel compelled to offer this tribute to one of my all-time 'ne plus ultra' loves, the Negroni.

Let's be clear: this is a bitter drink, and it's better for a reason. I was first introduced to the concept of bitters by my mother. All the years that she lived as a nurse with the U.S. Army In Germany told her that bitter is the best digestive medicine in the world. This remains the case to this day, and on the herbalist side of this, we can say that we know that the phytogenic compound called berberine is the responsible agent, but I digress. My mother had these little orange bottles of bitters from Germany that she would give me whenever I had an upset stomach. Of course, they were bitter, so I made that "mom, how in the world you expect me to drink this" face, and yet they worked like a charm every time. You will not make that face when you taste a Negroni, however. Although this drink is set up on bitter, think more like grapefruit rind than actual bitterness.

I could wax poetic for quite some time about this one particular beverage. It was one of the first things I saw that had true craftsmanship and artistry behind just pouring in ingredients into a glass and stirring. Be sure to see the extra credit at the bottom of the post for that final beautiful flourish that turns this from an arguably incredible classic cocktail into a true work of art.

While the Negroni is considered one of the most classic cocktails, this sipper is thought to have grown out of another drink, the Mi-To, a mix of Campari, which is made in Milan, and sweet vermouth, which is made in Torino, shot with seltzer and garnished with a lemon peel during World War I. The easy-going Mi-To became popular with US servicemen stationed in Italy, where it took on the nickname it's now known by today, the Americano. There is a side story, too, in Venice at the Caffe Florian, which I absolutely will not miss when I am there. A story was related to me by the bartender there that when the Americans were in Italy, the drink was too bitter for them, and they asked for orange juice to be added to the basic beverage; at that point, it became the Americano. But at the end of the day, who knows?

Different origin stories credit competing Counts, Count Camillo Negroni, and Count Pascal Negroni (everybody is royalty in that family?) with inventing the Mi-To that would eventually bear the family name. The drink's true father is debated, as is the location of the invention. Was it Camillo who allegedly asked a bartender at Café Cassone in Florence to replace the seltzer with gin sometime around 1920? Or, was it Pascal, a Corsican General stationed in colonial French Senegal, who created the drink in honor of his wedding in the 1860s? Whatever the real story, the switch turned a bubbly, thirst-quenching, long drink into a stiff, short drink that went on to conquer modern cocktail culture. (My bet is on the Generente')

The classic Negroni formula is equal parts gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth. That-is-it. Done.

A huge gin fan might bump up the base spirit in a 2-1-1 ratio. Someone looking for a more bitter forward might do the same with the Campari. Vermouth seems to play a bit of a third wheel here, but it's a co-star of its own standing. Using a rich, full-bodied Carpano Antica Formula (My Favorite Vermouth, BTW!), for example, will produce a classic Negroni, while a French Noilly Pratt or Dolin Rouge will make a lighter style. Please don't use Punt e' Mes or thick, sweet vermouth in this drink. Think about matching the vermouth to the gin. Piney juniper for gins from the London Dry School needs a vermouth that can stand up to them. If you go to the store to buy a gin, just ask for "London Dry," and they will show you. (Think Tanqueray, or Bombay)The botanical profiles of modern-style gins, like Hendricks, are better matched to mellower vermouths. Experiment: cocktails can be classic, but that doesn't mean they're carved in stone.

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Extra Credit: Make a truly luxurious event!

It's about the ART!

Pay Attention to the way the peel is being held! With the outside of the rind facing the flame. It's critical for the right effect and result.

Flaming an orange peel (coin)… what?

What You'll Need

• One fresh Orange, preferably organic. (Wash it first! It could have pesticides and citrus wax - not a winning formula.) Most importantly, freshness really matters here. As citrus ages, its skin dries out. The fresher your fruit, the brighter the flame.

• Sharp paring knife.

• Wooden matches. You might be asking yourself, "can I use this lighter I have in my pocket?" That question is the wrong question, friend. The real question is, "Do you really want butane in your drink?"

What You'll Do

1. Cut a round "coin" of orange peel, at least an inch in diameter. This time, don't worry too much about getting some of the pith. A thicker piece of peel is easier to squeeze over a lit match.

2. Light a match; hold the lit match several inches above the cocktail.

3. Hold the orange peel skin side down, about two inches above the lit match. (If you wind up with match soot on the peel, you held the peel too close to the flame, hey!) I prefer to wave the peel slowly over the match for a couple of seconds to help warm the oil so it lights more easily, but this isn't always necessary.

4. Squeeze the peel over the lit match. A quick, strong squeeze.

5. Rub the peel around the rim of the glass. Drop the twist into the drink.

Be patient. The first few times you do this, it might not work very well, but keep practicing. Be sure to use fresh oranges, and you'll eventually get it down.

Take a look at this image:

What you are seeing here is the very fine droplets of orange oil passing through the candle flame. This oil lightly burns as it passes through the candle flame before landing on top of the drink. So what you're actually doing here is adding burnt orange oil to the drink, which becomes a significant and prominent player in the beverage itself.

SO CLASSY. I recommend wearing a coat and tie or anything else that makes you feel sexy. I always prefer a tuxedo or at least a formal shirt under my chef's coat.

NEED TO SEE IT? Here is a video.

Cheers!

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