Category: campari

campari

The Allomancer| A Bright & Bitter Orange Cocktail inspired by the Mistborn Series

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The Allomancer cocktail is made with orange liqueur, Campari, cara cara orange juice, and Brighter blood orange apple cider vinegar tonic. The name comes from the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson.

The Allomancer cocktail is a Girl & Tonic original recipe made with blood orange Brighter tonic, Campari, orange liqueur, and cara cara orange. The Mistborn series was the inspiration for this cocktail’s name. Fair warning that today’s post may be a touch nerdy.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I’ll receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

I love books. But I’m a terrible reader. It’s not that I can’t read well, I just read slowwwlyy. I don’t skim– I take in every word and use them to create elaborate scenes in my head… then often have to reread for the plot because I’m so busy thinking about what everything would look like. This is why I both love and loathe fantasy books. Fantasy writers are known for their incredible descriptiveness and their abilities to create different worlds and universes where their stories take place. My imagination runs wild with all this information but that also means it takes me for-ev-er to finish a fantasy book.

My husband is an avid reader and can knock out a phonebook-sized tome in a matter of days. He loves fantasy, too, and has burned through so many series that I can’t keep track. (We have two tall bookcases that are 3 books deep. Yep. Each shelf has 3 rows of books on it. Take that in for a second.) So when he tells me I would love a series, I trust him. But as a mom, online ESL teacher, and cocktail blogger, I don’t have the luxury of time. That’s why I thank & bless the inventors of audiobooks–otherwise, I’d have no chance to escape to a fantasy universe.

The Allomancer cocktail is made with orange liqueur, Campari, cara cara orange juice, and Brighter blood orange apple cider vinegar tonic. The name comes from the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson.

The Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson has been every bit as incredible as my husband had said it would be. We’re currently halfway through the first Mistborn trilogy and I love it. One of the things I love the most about it is that the magic system is so unique. Allomancy is far from the typical magic that a wizard or mage would use.

Instead of casting spells or using wands or staffs to zap stuff, allomancers (people who have the ability to use allomancy) “burn” or draw upon the powers found in metals. Different metals produce different effects: burning tin enhances the senses, burning zinc and brass enable the allomancer to manipulate peoples’ emotions, pewter increases physical strength, and steel and iron give one the ability to push away from and pull themselves towards other metals, essentially enabling these allomancers to zip through the air from building to building. Pretty cool.

There are several more metals but I’ll stop there since I assume most of you reading this out there aren’t fantasy nerds like myself. Not every allomancer can burn every metal. In fact, the majority of allomancers can only burn one. These individuals are called Mistings. A rare few can burn ALL of the metals and these are the Mistborn. There’s a whole thing about the mists, too, but again, I’ll stop myself. I honestly could create a whole cocktail series based on this book. And maybe one day I will. But for now, this Allomancer cocktail will stand alone.

The Allomancer cocktail is made with orange liqueur, Campari, cara cara orange juice, and Brighter blood orange apple cider vinegar tonic. The name comes from the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson.

The Allomancer cocktail is both bright and bitter, a perfect balance between the two. It also has a lower alcohol content because I used two liqueurs and no liquors in this recipe. Campari, an Italian red liqueur, is known for its bitter bite and orange liqueur is known for its ability to sweeten up cocktails. I love bitter orange and thought I’d merge the two and see how it worked. I’m probably a little biased, but I think it worked well.

I’d also been wanting to create a cocktail recipe that could highlight the divine flavors of Brighter‘s sparkling blood orange apple cider vinegar tonic. I’m a huge fan of Brighter and used their lemon-lime flavor in my Mother’s Garden cocktail/mocktail not too long ago. It’s taken me a while to finally decide, but the blood orange flavor is my favorite. I knew I had to do it justice. If blood oranges were in season now, I would’ve used them to accentuate that flavor but since they’re not, I used cara cara orange juice to add some more freshness to the drink.

The Allomancer cocktail is made with orange liqueur, Campari, cara cara orange juice, and Brighter blood orange apple cider vinegar tonic. The name comes from the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson.

If you make the Allomancer cocktail or if you’re a fan of the Mistborn series too, let me know in the comments or in a DM over on my Instagram page. Cocktail lovers and fantasy nerds are both my kinda people.

Ingredients for the Allomancer Cocktail

  • 3/4 oz Campari or other bitter Italian liqueur
  • 3/4 oz orange liqueur
  • 1/2 oz orange juice, freshly squeezed
  • 3 + oz blood orange Brighter tonic (sub blood orange kombucha if you can’t find Brighter near you)

How to Make an Allomancer

Add ice, Campari, orange liqueur, and fresh orange juice to a cocktail shaker. Shake. Strain into a champagne flute. Top off the rest of the glass with the blood orange Brighter tonic. Garnish with an orange peel.

The Allomancer

A bright and bitter orange cocktail with a lower ABV.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 3 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Equipment

  • cocktail shaker

Ingredients
  

  • ¾ oz Campari
  • ¾ oz orange liqueur
  • ½ oz freshly-squeezed cara cara orange juice
  • 3+ oz blood orange Brighter tonic (or blood orange kombucha)

Instructions
 

  • Add ice, Campari, orange liqueur, and fresh orange juice to a cocktail shaker. Shake.
  • Strain into a champagne flute.
  • Top off the rest of the glass with the blood orange Brighter tonic.
  • Garnish with an orange peel.
Keyword blood orange Brighter tonic, Brighter Tonic, campari, orange, orange juice, orange liqueur

gin

Hibiscus Negroni | A Vibrant Spin on a Bitter Classic Cocktail

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The Hibiscus Negroni is a sweeter riff on the Negroni, a classic cocktail known for its bitter bite. The hibiscus syrup made by SimplyGala makes it easy to incorporate the hallmark flavor of hibiscus without the fuss of having to make it yourself.

The Hibiscus Negroni is a sweet, floral riff on the Negroni, a classic cocktail known for its bitter bite. The hibiscus syrup made by SimplyGala makes it easy to incorporate the hallmark flavor of hibiscus without the fuss of having to make it yourself.

This post is sponsored by SimplyGala. All opinions are my own.

Y’all know that my passion is to get you (yes you, dear reader) hyped about making cocktails at home. I definitely want you to make *my* drink recipes but I also really want you to try your hand at coming up with your own. Perhaps you’ve already read through my Cocktails 101 post and my 5 Tips for Making Cocktails at Home but you’re still hesitant to actually start experimenting on your own. I get it. I feel ya. No one wants to waste precious ounces of alcohol in a mystery recipe that could end up tasting nasty.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

One of the easiest ways to start experimenting with cocktail recipes is by exploring the wide world of syrups. If you’re not comfortable trying to come up with a totally new recipe, just put your own spin on a classic by adding a flavored simple syrup. I’ve got several recipes on this blog for ones you can make yourself (you can browse them all here), but my friends over at SimplyGala have several flavors that you can purchase.

I recently discovered SimplyGala syrups and am so glad I did. I make a lot of my own simple syrups for two reasons: 1) I’m picky about ingredients, and 2) I’m pretty frugal. SimplyGala syrups are the answer to my penny-pinching, artificial-flavor-spurning prayers. They have a wide range of flavors at affordable prices with 0 bad ingredients. I recently made a passion fruit Paloma recipe using their passion fruit syrup and woo-wee, it was goo-ood. You can check out that post to learn more about SimplyGala as a company, too.

SimplyGala sent me their hibiscus syrup and I was easy to try it. My first thought was to use it in a Gin Campari Sour. But then I remembered that this week is Negroni Week.

The Hibiscus Negroni is a sweeter riff on the Negroni, a classic cocktail known for its bitter bite. The hibiscus syrup made by SimplyGala makes it easy to incorporate the hallmark flavor of hibiscus without the fuss of having to make it yourself.

Negroni Week was instituted in 2013 by Imbibe Magazine and Campari as a way to raise money for charities. This year, though, all the funds raised will go towards supporting our friends in the hospitality and restaurant industries. So many bars and restaurants are really hurting due to new COVID rules and restrictions and now we have an easy opportunity to help them. You can read more about #negroniweek and donate by clicking here.

What is a Negroni though? It’s a classic cocktail made with 3 ingredients: gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth. I’d go as far as to say that it’s the most polarizing cocktail out there. You either hate ’em or love ’em. I fell in the first category for a long time until I taught myself how to like Campari (you can check out this post to read more about how I did that). A Negroni is still not my preferred way to enjoy Campari… but this Hibiscus Negroni has changed my tune.

Negronis are loved/detested because they’re incredibly bitter. I wanted to balance this flavor and thought that hibiscus syrup would be a great way to do that. If you’ve never tried hibiscus before, it’s got a tart, almost cranberry-like flavor. Using it in syrup form means I could also introduce some needed sweetness to the classic drink. The Hibiscus Negroni still has the signature bitter notes of a traditional Negroni but it’s offset a bit by the tartness and sweetness of the hibiscus syrup. I’m a fan.

One thing I love about SimplyGala’s hibiscus syrup is that there are only 3 ingredients: pure cane sugar + water + hibiscus flowers. No artificial colors, artificial flavors, chemicals, or preservatives. Unfortunately, that can’t be said about other hibiscus syrups out there on the market.

The Hibiscus Negroni is a sweeter riff on the Negroni, a classic cocktail known for its bitter bite. The hibiscus syrup made by SimplyGala makes it easy to incorporate the hallmark flavor of hibiscus without the fuss of having to make it yourself.

Just browse all the different SimplyGala syrup options— they’re sure to inspire many of your own cocktail creations. If you’re wanting some recipe inspo for your new syrups, check out these 17 easy cocktail recipes that can easily be altered by changing the syrup flavor. Who knows, this time next month I could be reading your new cocktail blog.

If you’ve previously scorned Negronis, give this one a try and tag me on Instagram!

The Hibiscus Negroni is a sweeter riff on the Negroni, a classic cocktail known for its bitter bite. The hibiscus syrup made by SimplyGala makes it easy to incorporate the hallmark flavor of hibiscus without the fuss of having to make it yourself.

Ingredients for a Hibiscus Negroni

  • 1 oz gin
  • 1 oz Campari
  • 1/2 oz sweet vermouth
  • 1/2 oz SimplyGala’s hibiscus syrup

How to Make a Hibiscus Negroni

Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with a couple large ice cubes. Stir to incorporate. Strain into a lowball glass filled with a large ice cube. Garnish with a lemon peel.

The Hibiscus Negroni is a sweeter riff on the Negroni, a classic cocktail known for its bitter bite. The hibiscus syrup made by SimplyGala makes it easy to incorporate the hallmark flavor of hibiscus without the fuss of having to make it yourself.



rum

Jungle Bird | The Tiki Cocktail That’s Not Too Sweet

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The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

I’ve been holding out on y’all for too long. The Jungle Bird is my favorite cocktail at the moment and it has been for some time. This recipe has sat on my “To Post” list since late spring and it’s now the middle of summer and I don’t know how that happened and I’m really sorry, okay? I’m gonna make it right.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like

Thinking of a Jungle Bird cocktail actually makes my mouth water. There’s something about the flavor of this drink that is so unique to me. When it first hits your tongue, you taste the pineapple. It’s bright and sweet. But then it becomes warm and rich, thanks to the dark rum and Demerara syrup. The Campari catches up at the end. It leaves a delectable bitter taste on your tongue that makes you want to take another sip.

The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

The Jungle Bird was supposedly created in the 1970s at the Hilton Hotel’s Aviary Bar in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was served as the welcome drink for guests arriving at the hotel and was wildly popular then. However, the recipe disappeared into relative obscurity until Campari started peaking the interests of American imbibers in the 2010s. This article on ThirstMag.com explores more of the history of the Jungle Bird and includes several recipe variations. One day I want to try all of these.

Tiki bars and tiki cocktails are a TREND right now. They have been for the past few years but now they’re piping hot right now. The OG tiki bar was Don the Beachcomber in Hollywood that opened up at the end of 1933, mere days after the ending of Prohibition. Since then, tiki bars and drinks have gone in and out of style but it seems like they’ll be around for a while longer. In case some of you like reading the history articles I post, this article by The Atlantic examines the rise, fall, and resurgence of tiki bars in America. It’s an interesting read. Difford’s Guide has a great article, too, and details the history of tiki culture.

The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

Tiki cocktails don’t typically call for Campari. Actually, this is the only one I know of that does. Tiki cocktails are known for being fruit-forward and pretty sweet. I feel like people usually fall into two categories: people who enjoy sweet drinks and people who don’t.

That’s what makes the Jungle Bird the perfect drink. The combination of the pineapple juice, rum, & Demerara syrup makes it undeniably tropical and sweet. But the Campari’s bitterness balances it all out. It’s the best of all worlds.

The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

In addition to being fruity and sweet, tiki cocktails are also known for their complexity, in terms of both flavor and difficulty. They usually have a lot of ingredients that are harder to come by, so the Jungle Bird is a pretty simple tiki drink, in comparison.

A quick note on the ingredients: the original recipe calls for traditional simple syrup, but I chose to use Demerara syrup. The original recipe also calls for dark rum but I’ve used Kraken spiced rum before and it is GOOD! Don’t use white rum, though. It’ll get lost. Save the white rum for your Daiquiris or Easy Coladas.

If you’ve been wanting to jump on the Campari bandwagon or if you’re trying to use up the bottle you bought back in ’18 and haven’t touched since, I implore you to try this recipe. It’s the perfect introduction to Campari. Once you’re able to appreciate the bitterness in the Jungle Bird, try making a Campari To-Kill-Ya or a Gin Campari Sour.

The Jungle Bird cocktail is a perfectly balanced tiki drink. It's not too sweet, thanks to the addition of Campari. It's a meeting ground for people who love sweet drinks and people who don't.

Ingredients for a Jungle Bird Cocktail

  • 1 1/2 oz dark rum (can substitute spiced rum)
  • 3/4 oz Campari
  • 1 1/2 oz pineapple juice
  • 1/2 oz lime juice
  • 1/2 oz Demerara syrup (can substitute plain simple syrup)

How to Make a Jungle Bird Cocktail

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well, about 20 seconds. Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice. The pineapple juice will create a nice foam. Garnish with a pineapple frond and pineapple wedge.

Jungle Bird Cocktail Recipe

The Jungle Bird is a classic tiki cocktail recipe that's the perfect balance between sweet, tart, and bitter.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 3 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ oz dark rum (can sub spiced rum)
  • ¾ oz Campari
  • 1½ oz pineapple juice
  • ½ oz lime juice
  • ½ oz Demerara syrup* (can sub plain simple syrup)

Instructions
 

  • Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
  • Shake well, about 20 seconds.
  • Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice.
  • Garnish with a pineapple frond and pineapple wedge.

Notes

The longer you shake, the frothier the pineapple juice will get.
*For a Demerara syrup recipe, click here. It’s 2 ingredients and super easy. Promise.
Keyword campari, dark rum, demerara syrup, lime juice, pineapple juice
tequila

Campari To-Kill-Ya | A Campari & Tequila Cocktail

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Campari To-Kill-Ya Cocktail | A Campari and Tequila Cocktail perfect for summer. | Bright, refreshing, and not too sweet.

I am so stoked to share this Campari To-Kill-Ya cocktail recipe today. If you’ve been following me for the last month or so, you’re aware of my mission to make myself love Campari. My feelings have gone from despise –> tolerate –> like –> really enjoy –> love. It’s been an experiment to see if one can acquire an acquired taste. I’m happy to report that you can.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

In case you don’t know what Campari is, it’s a super bitter/funky red liqueur. Drinks with Campari usually take on its signature red hue, making them look deceptively sweet. But that’s typically far from the truth. I think this one of the reasons I wanted to like this liqueur. I’m usually not a fan of sweet cocktails so I was intrigued by this alcohol that seemed to be the antithesis of all things sweet & fruity.

Campari To-Kill-Ya Cocktail | A Campari and Tequila Cocktail perfect for summer. | Bright, refreshing, and not too sweet. | Summer cocktails

Trying Campari in a variety of cocktails is what helped me start to notice and appreciate its nuances. It’s been fun to see how it plays with other flavors, like pineapple juice, mint, & lime, and other liquors like gin, rum, and tequila.

The first Campari cocktail I made was a Negroni because it is THE classic Campari cocktail. I really didn’t like it. Then I made a Boulevardier and tolerated it. Not long after, I saw the recipe for a Gin Campari Sour and I really liked it. The simple syrup and egg white really helped smooth over the rough edges of the gin, Campari, & lemon juice. It was fun. Next, I made a [few] Americanos and truly enjoyed them. The cocktail that made me LOVE Campari??? Well, that recipe’s coming soon. Maybe this week, maybe next. It’s a little more complicated and I need to restock one of the ingredients but WOOF.

Campari To-Kill-Ya Cocktail | A Campari and Tequila Cocktail perfect for summer. | Bright, refreshing, and not too sweet.

Now that I love Campari, I’m on a new mission: try as many Campari recipes at I can. I remembered I had saved a Campari and tequila cocktail on my Instagram a while back. Armed with my newly-enlightened tastebuds, I was ready to try this drink. I would NOT have thought that Campari and tequila could go together, but Julianna McIntosh’s recipe convinced me to give it a shot.

Julianna is the creative genius behind the cocktail recipes at Bringing It Home and she also has an Instagram account, Join Jules. You can find the original post for her recipe here. The photos alone are eye candy and she really seems to have a knack for creating original recipes. She’s also got a recipe for a Mezcal Negroni. Oh my garsh. Smoky mezcal… bitter Campari… bright orange… I think I’m salivating. I’m going to have to try that recipe soon.

Campari To-Kill-Ya Cocktail | A Campari and Tequila Cocktail perfect for summer. | Bright, refreshing, and not too sweet.

If you love Campari already, I really think you’re going to enjoy this Campari To-Kill-Ya recipe. If you’re on the fence about it, try it out anyway. The bitterness of the Campari really ends up making the orange & lime juice taste grapefruit-y. It’s very enjoyable. Bright, refreshing, and a touch boozy.

Julianna’s original recipe calls for monk fruit simple syrup, which is made the same way regular simple syrup is made, just with monk fruit granulated sugar instead of white sugar. I don’t have monk fruit sugar so I just used regular and the recipe still came out divine.

Campari To-Kill-Ya Cocktail | A Campari and Tequila Cocktail perfect for summer. | Bright, refreshing, and not too sweet.

Ingredients for a Campari To-Kill-Ya

  • 1 1/2 oz tequila
  • 3/4 oz Campari
  • 3/4 oz fresh lime juice (fresh is always best–prove me wrong)
  • 1/2 oz fresh orange juice (ditto above)
  • 1/2 oz monk fruit simple syrup or regular simple syrup
  • 6-10 mint leaves, + more for garnish
  • Sparkling water or club soda (I used club soda and the trace amount of salt really played up the flavors, IMO)

How To Make a Campari To-Kill-Ya

Add tequila, Campari, & mint leaves to a cocktail shaker and muddle until the leaves are bruised. Add ice, lime juice, lemon juice, and simple syrup. Shake well. Strain to a lowball glass filled with ice. Top off with the club soda.

Americano Cocktail
campari

Americano Cocktail | A Classic Campari Cocktail with 3 Ingredients

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If you’ve tried Campari cocktails in the past and they haven’t been for you, I challenge you to try the Americano cocktail. The Americano is a softer introduction to the bitter taste of Campari. In my most recent Campari cocktail recipe, I mentioned that I was not a fan of Negronis. Shocking, considering I love both gin & bitter stuff. When I first heard of an Americano, I assumed I wouldn’t like it either. After all, two-thirds of the ingredients are the same. The Americano just switches out gin for club soda. I didn’t think it would make much of a difference.

But it does. Since such a large percentage of this cocktail is club soda, i.e. water, it really tempers the strong bitter profile of Campari. The bubbles in the soda also make it more palatable for someone like me. This drink, along with the Gin Campari Sour, is going to help me train my tastebuds to like Campari.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I love!

It’s like when I was in high school and I wanted to like coffee. Growing up, my parents didn’t drink coffee so I really had no exposure to it. I remember being excited to finally try some and was sorely disappointed by my first sip. But I was determined to develop a taste for the stuff. I strategically ordered all the java chip frappés at my local coffee shop (shout out to Jitters) until I could eventually tolerate, then appreciate, the taste of coffee.

While we’re talking about coffee and Campari, now’s the perfect time to point out the fact that there are two Americanos in the drink world: the coffee version and the cocktail version. They taste nothing alike, besides the fact that they’re both bitter and not sweet. An Americano coffee is espresso with additional hot water added to dilute the strong flavor. An Americano cocktail is Campari diluted with soda water to tone it down. Ah. I guess that’s a sign that us Americans like our bitter drinks less intense.

Now, if you already love Campari, then you’ll enjoy an Americano. It’s light and refreshing, the perfect pre-dinner cocktail, known as an apéritif (or aperitivo). Traditionally, apéritifs are cocktails enjoyed before dinner to open the palate in preparation for the meal. The word apéritif actually originates from the Latin verb “aperire” which means ‘to open’. They’re typically dry, bitter drinks with low alcohol content. Vermouth, dry white wines, Americanos and Aperol Spritzes are common apéritifs. This fun post goes into more detail about the culture of drinking aperitivos in Italy.

I feel like now is also an important time to quickly note a difference between all the carbonated waters. Here’s a quick show down of all the bubble h20:

  • Club soda is infused with carbon and minerals like salt (my HEB brand has sea salt–fancy)
  • Seltzer usually does not contain any minerals
  • Sparkling mineral water is typically naturally carbonated and has naturally-present minerals
  • Sparkling water is carbonated water and can be flavored and sometimes sweetened
  • Tonic water is carbonated water with minerals and also quinine, a bitter essence derived from the chichona tree & used to treat things like malaria and leg cramps

The first four taste pretty similar and can honestly be used interchangeably in cocktail recipes without much a problem. Tonic water has a very distinct taste and shouldn’t be used in place of another type of sparkling water– unless you know you like the taste of tonic. Just be warned it may not jive with the rest of the drink’s flavors.

If you’ve been looking for a Campari cocktail to win you over, look no further.

The Americano Cocktail is a classic cocktail that's been around for decades. It's bitter, dry, and yet very refreshing, making it the perfect aperitif. The best part about the Americano is that you'll only need 3 ingredients to make it.

The Ingredients for an Americano Cocktail

  • 1 – 1 1/2 oz Campari
  • 1 – 1 1/2 oz sweet vermouth
  • club soda

How to Make an Americano Cocktail

Fill a Collins glass or highball glass with ice. Pour in the Campari and vermouth. Fill the rest of the glass with club soda. Stir with a straw or bar spoon. Sip and feel so European.

Americano Cocktail Recipe | Classic Campari Cocktail Recipe with 3 simple ingredients