The summer isn’t over yet, but if you’re finding your self looking for a little more complexity in your glass, why not consider the Americano. This drink lives in the same family as the Highball, and replaces whiskey for Campari and sweet vermouth. The result is an aromatic and light low A.B.V. drink that blends late summer nights into warm fall days.
The Classics: Americano
The Americano is refreshing, slightly sweet, herbal, and complex. Between the bright notes of the herbal Campari and the subtle sweet and fermented fruit tones, there’s a lot to unpack here. The soda adds levity and orange expresses another dimension. The result is a delightfully quaffable drink that’s easy to make, and refreshing to drink
Drink Notes & Recommendations
Most of the changes to this template will revolve around the quantity of Campari and sweet vermouth compared to the soda. It’s mostly personal preference, but generally anywhere from 5:2 or 2:1 are the ratio of Campari / Sweet Vermouth to soda. Try making adjustments to see what works best for you. Also, don’t think you need to refill the glass completely, you can always top up part way through with more soda to keep the flavor going without adding more booze.
- Campari – With Campari’s unique flavor profile, it’s really the recommended starting point for this drink. That said, because of how this template is constructed, you could lower the A.B.V. even further using a non-alcoholic Amaro or just use a different bittering liquor. This is a flexible low A.B.V. template you should feel free to explore with!
- Sweet Vermouth – We used Carpano Antica here, but as this is one of the two ingredients that drive the base of the Americano, you should consider using whatever vermouth you enjoy best. Both light and fruity (Lustau) or rice and sweet (Cocchi di Torino, Carpano) will work well.
- Seltzer / Club – We use Club at home, but using Seltzer is traditional here. It adds minerality for another layer. We encourage you to experiment and try both.
- Orange – This is one of those cases where you can’t skip the garnish. The orange adds aromatics that induce you to unpack more of the aromatics from the wine and Campari. This makes the drink, don’t skip it!
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