Q.
The Negroni – another classic drink on James Bond’s ‘shaken not stirred’ list. Its three equal-part ingredients? Gin, sweet vermouth, and Campari.

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In this excerpt from Ian Fleming’s 1960 short story Risico, we find 007 meeting with Kristatos.

‘The waiter came. ‘Good evening, sir. Signor Kristatos is at the telephone.’
Bond nodded. ‘A Negroni. With Gordon’s, please.’
The water walked back to the bar. ‘Negroni. Uno. Gordon’s.’
‘I am so sorry.’ The big hairy hand picked up the small chair as if it had been as light as a match-box and swept it under the heavy hips. ‘I had to have a word with Alfredo.’

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Who invented this Bond-approved cocktail?

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A.
Get ready for a battle between the Count and the General.  ⚔️

When it comes to Negroni bragging rights, drink historians tend to come down on the side of the 🗡️ Count.

Count Camillo Negroni was a polymath: cowboy, fencing master, gambler, rodeo clown. In 1919, the story goes, the Count ordered Florence bartender, Fosco Scarselli, to beef up his Americano. Fosco obliged, replaced the water with gin and, voila: the Negroni.

By Count count, the Negroni was invented in 1919. In 2019 – for the alleged ‘100 Year anniversary’ – The New York Times dubbed the Negroni, ‘the Perfect Cocktail.’

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The family of General Pascal-Olivier de Negroni takes serious issue with this 1919 Count hoopla. The Count couldn’t have invented the Negroni, they say, because he did not exist.

Whom do they credit? The General, of course. That is: 🗡️ General Pascal-Olivier de Negroni – an Officier of the French Légion d’honneur.

These ancestors produce an 1850s letter from the General to his brother, Roche, that includes: ‘Incidentally, did you know that the vermouth-based cocktail that I invented in Saint Louis is a great hit at the Lunéville officers club?”

“Impossible!” say Count loyalists. The 1850s bragging General could not have concocted the Negroni. One third of its ingredients – the red Italian Campari bitter – was not even invented until the 1860s.

With credit to the Count, General, neither, or both, the Negroni is once again ranked #1 in Drinks International’s  survey of 100 award-winning bars and their ten best-selling classic cocktails.

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Best-Selling Classic Cocktails in 2024
i.     Negroni
ii.    Old Fashioned
iii.   Margarita
iv.   Espresso Martini
v.     Daiquiri
vi.   Whiskey Sour
vii.  Dry Martini
viii. Aperol Spritz
ix.   Paloma
x.    Moscow Mule

www.justcurious.ca

Header: A Fairytale Negroni. Photo by Johann Trasch
Photo 2: Getty Images