Forum
Celebration
One of our most popular cocktails from Thanksgiving through to the end of the December holiday period. Reminiscent of a brandy-based Negroni served straight-up...
Chris Brislawn
30th January 2024 at 05:49
Very good as written but also works great Valentino-style with (2:1:1) proportions (1.5 oz cognac, 3/4 oz each vermouth and red bitter). Used Antica Formula and Martini & Rossi Riserva Speciale Bitter. Served it in DOF glasses with both orange and lemon twists. Excellent!
4th December 2024 at 04:00
I just made this using your proportions and it was delicious and very balanced. We'll be using this recipe often throughout the winter holidays, I think.
2nd December 2024 at 21:40
Agree on the Valentino-style. It helps elevate the cognac and makes it into less of a cognac Negroni.
2nd December 2024 at 23:03
Thanks. We just revisited this over Thanksgiving (last Thursday) with Carpano Classico and Tempus Fugit Bitter. I frequently find "equal-parts-of-everything" cocktails to be muddy and overly sweet or imbalanced. It seems to have been a thing back in the early days of mixology, when all of this was new. Building a drink by choosing a base liquor (even a split base) and then adding smaller, designed amounts of flavorful and sweet/sour/bitter contributions chosen for their ability to play together nicely elevates the added ingredients as well as the base. The 4:1:1 Valentino proportions are pretty lean but 2:1:1 seems like a good starting point for many drinks with a base and two complementary additives.