Bar Exam: Intro to Aperol cocktail- a new classic?

There's something enjoyable about writing about a new cocktail find at ten in the morning. It seems somehow wrong and right at the same time. There's that ingrained guilt over thinking about booze so early in the morning, the "should I be worried about this?", countered by the anticipatory thought of "what am I going to be sipping after work?" Oh, well, I'll leave that for others to worry about. This blog is really all about sharing ideas, and maybe giving you something new, different, and delightful to enjoy at home!

I read about this Intro to Aperol cocktail in what has become my go to inspiration for new cocktails, Washington Post writer Jason Wilson's bi-monthly spirits column. A couple of weeks ago he had a column dedicated to what are classic cocktails, and is there room for new classics? Martinis, Manhattans, margaritas, etc. are rightly considered "classics". But shouldn't some of the new cocktails that today's mixologists concoct have a chance to elevated to the same pantheon? To me, of course they should. Who are we to say that some new-millennial drink couldn't possibly be as good as some 1920's favorite. It's like closing off a sports hall of fame to new inductees. As Wilson went off about new ingredients and possibilities he focused on the Italian aperitivo Aperol, which I had zero experience with. Wildly popular in Italy, not so much here. Called by one writer "training wheels for Campari" due it's slightly sweeter, less bitter flavor. This drink, concocted by Audrey Saunders of New York's Pegu Club, while probably not a classic, is an absolutely delicious, lighter weight drink, a perfect starter cocktail for a night of indulgence!
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Intro to Aperol
From Washington Post/Jason Wilson

Wilson: "It's a rare cocktail in which Aperol (a bright orange, low-proof Italian aperitivo) takes center stage. A version of this is a mainstay on the menu at the famed Pegu Club, where the drink's garnish of orange peel is flamed before it is dropped into the drink."

1 serving
ingredients:
Ice
2 ounces Aperol
1 ounce gin
3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 ounce simple syrup (see NOTE)
1 dash Angostura bitters
Twist of orange peel, for garnish

method:
Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Add the Aperol, gin, lemon juice, simple syrup and bitters. Shake well, then strain into a chilled cocktail (martini) glass. Twist the orange peel over the drink to release its oils, then drop it into the glass.

NOTE: To make simple syrup, combine 1/2 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup of water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a slow rolling boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 5 minutes. Transfer to a heatproof container and let cool to room temperature. Cover tightly, and refrigerate until chilled through; store indefinitely.
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one year ago today on E.D.T.: the Keller v. Achatz carnival of excess!

Sacred things

We all hold certain things sacred. Some more fervently than others. Religion and family of course are two big ones for some. The inexplicable need to dress up in public as a character from Star Trek among other losers...errrr, members of your peer group, is another. For me the cocktail, particularly classic cocktails, are not to be trifled with. When the martini craze was in full bloom I would shudder at the sight of something called a "Chocolate Martini". The "Appletini" would cause me no end of aggravation. The point being a Martini is two things: gin and dry vermouth. Anything else is a cocktail, not a fill-in-the-blank-"tini". And usually a cocktail that is best ignored.

Perhaps my most revered cocktail is the Negroni, which like the martini is simplicity itself. Three ingredients instead of two: Campari, gin, and sweet vermouth in equal proportions. Even given its seemingly simple preparation, I've had some egregious examples. Any messing with the proportions throws the whole thing out of balance. Don't even start with changing ingredients. This all came to mind last Saturday when we went to Alba Osteria for dinner. On their cocktail list was something called a Negroni Sbagliato, which substituted prosecco for the gin. It was explained by our waiter as a negroni that is "lightened up". Once I got over my initial skepticism and considered it, it sounded quite good, even with the name "negroni" attached. So last night, in the interest of open-mindedness, and because a good cocktail seemed the perfect antidote to the day, I grabbed a bottle of prosecco off the shelf at VINO and made one. One sip and I was smitten! This really is a nice, rather than unfortunate, riff on a classic cocktail. So good that even adding negroni to the name seems to be not worth worrying about. Besides, if I do start to stress, what better way to calm myself than with another Negroni Sbagliato!
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Negroni Sbagliato
from Alba Osteria

ingredients:
1-1/2 ounces each Campari, sweet vermouth, and prosecco.
Twist of lemon for garnish

method:
Fill cocktail shaker partway with ice, the amount depending on how many cocktails you are preparing. For my one drink, I used five cubes. Add Campari and sweet vermouth. Shake for 30 seconds, then strain into champagne flute. Add prosecco and stir gently to combine. Add garnish. Enjoy!

Campari Aranciata Cocktail: keeping it simple!

Simple is almost always better isn't it? Life is complicated enough in this technology driven world. This morning for example I met with a "Genius" at our local Apple store because I couldn't figure out to load my email program onto my new iPhone. I love Apple's "Genius Bar". Where people like me who know next to nothing about computers go to get humiliated by a geeky 20-something who looks at me like I'm an idiot. I'd resent it more but he's pretty much right, which doesn't make me feel any better. So while I realize I can't control that part of my world, I can control what I eat and drink. Hence, my search for simplicity. And good things to drink don't get any simpler than this deliciously refreshing Campari Aranciata Cocktail. Two ingredients, which are conveniently listed in the name. Oh, plus ice. I read about it in Jason Wilson's spirits column in The Washington Post. Being a lover of all things drinkable and made from Campari, I was intrigued. I grabbed some Pellegrino Aranciata and spent maybe 20 seconds making it.The slight citrusy, fizzy sweetness from the Aranciata perfectly complimented the bittersweet character of the Campari. Not a typical winter cocktail, but one that has me pining for warm weather when it will really rock the bar. Two ingredients that lead to two words: simply satisfying!
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Campari Aranciata Cocktail
adapted from Jason Wilson/The Washington Post

ingredients:
ice
2 ounces Campari
3 ounces Pellegrino Aranciata (the Pellegrino conveniently comes in bottles that are slightly over 6 ounces, so one bottle should be good for 2 cocktails)

method:
Fill highball glass 3/4 full with ice (preferably large cubes). Add Campari and Aranciata and stirr gently. Garnish with orange slice.

Salut Camilo e Gaspari!

It's the little differences that make all the difference. Of course I can relate this statement to my love and endless and healthy(?) fascination with cocktails. I write this as I sit at home having the national cocktail of Federal Republic of Bruce, an absolutely perfect Negroni. The Negroni, an oh so satisfying drink, traditionally a blend of gin, Campari (invented by Gaspari Campari in the early 1800s), and sweet vermouth in equal amounts, is an old school classic. It is named after Camilo Negroni who lived in early 1900s Florence and always ordered this particular libation.
My particular love affair with Camilo's concoction began years ago, and has never waned, through the highs of enjoying them at a sunny outdoor café table on the Giudecca Canal in Venice (for $2.00!!) to the lows of waking up after perhaps one too many with the unfortunate feeling of an elephant tap dancing on my head.
But I found out how big a little difference can be after a San Francisco afternoon a few years ago spent on a hunt for the perfect Negroni. It was in the bar at Bix, a wonderfully atmospheric place and perhaps my favorite Bay area haunt for martinis and other cocktails , that I learned the secret. I think this was stop number three on the search, and one sip in my eyes went wide and I turned to the bartender and said "You did something different here, didn't you?" I remember his satisfied little smile as he said that he indeed had his own minor variation on the classic one-to-one-to-one proportions. For so simple a recipe, you'd be amazed at how many bartenders screw it up, or riff on this, and completely lose sight of what is a drink that, as an old drinking companion succinctly said, "Made correctly is the perfectly balanced cocktail." So what was that little difference that made the perfect cocktail into something that was touched by the hand of God? He keeps the usual proportions of one part gin and one part Campari, but instead of one part sweet vermouth, he used 1/2 sweet and 1/2 dry vermouth. The dry vermouth gives it this slight acid bite that balances out the richness of the Campari and gin.
And if the Negroni is the National Cocktail of this Republic in my mind, then Tanqueray gin is the National Beverage. I say that as a prelude to advise you to use a somewhat more neutral gin...I prefer Gordon's...because the assertive flavor of Tanqueray tends to overpower the other elements. So easy, so good, and so important to my happiness. Mille grazie Camilo!

The Perfect Perfect Negroni
1 part gin, preferably Gordon's
1 part Campari
1/2 part sweet vermouth
1/2 part dry vermouth
Shake with ice, strain into a chilled martini glass, and garnish with a lemon twist.