Garnish:
Charred pine needles and a truffle slice
How to make:
1. Put on your best foraging hat, locate some fresh pine needles and brew up a batch of pine needle syrup (see notes)
2. Combine and shake all the ingredients over ice with a lemon twist
3. Strain into an old fashioned glass over a large cube of ice, then garnish
| 45 ml | Monkey 47 gin |
| 15 ml | Campari Bitter liqueur |
| 15 ml | Cocchi Americano Bianco |
| 15 ml | Cherry juice |
| 15 ml | Sugar syrup 'rich' (2 sugar to 1 water, 65.0°Brix) |
| 1 twist | Lemon peel |
Notes:
To make a pine needle syrup, start with a simple syrup (1 part water to 2 parts sugar), heat the mixture to dissolve the sugar, then take off the heat and add 4 parts pine needle. Cover and leave to steep for at least 12 hours. Strain multiple times through a fine sieve (or muslin) until you achieve a clear syrup.
Sour cherry juice can be mixed from concentrate or bought pre-prepared. I prefer 1 part sour cherry concentrate to 2 parts water, but the concentrate gives you the option to mix to your taste.
To char the pine needles, trim a bunch of needles and gently heat over a flame, being careful not to burn them!
Origin:
Bringing a touch of the Black Forest to the classic Negroni, the addition of a freshly foraged pine needle syrup and sour cherry juice adds a fresh twist to this slightly untraditional Gin/Campari/Cocchi blend. Born out of a love for the classic Negroni, this recipe puts Monkey 47 front and centre with the addition of subtle pine and cherry notes bringing out the forest forager in us all!
Go wild with the garnish, using charred pine needles, sliced truffle or anything else good you can find in the forest!
After my wife helped me forage for pine needles in deepest darkest East Midlands, I had to treat her to her favourite Negroni, but with a forager's twist!
