100 years of the Negroni: the history and etiquette of Italy’s aperitivo

Exactly one hundred years ago, the Negroni was born in a Florentine bar.

The story goes that a certain Count Camillo Negroni – who had worked, among other things, as a rodeo cowboy in America – was taking it easy in Florence’s Caffè Casoni bar in 1919. The Americanos (Campari, soda and vermouth) served at the time weren’t hitting the spot, so barman, Fosco “Gloomy” Scarselli was told to swap the water with gin. We’ve all been there.

Now celebrating its 100th anniversary, the Negroni has seen many incarnations over the years, from the ‘wrong’ Negroni ‘sbagliato’ to the vodka-laced ‘Negroski’, but its place in the hearts of Italians has remained unchanged.

The answer to why this most bitter of drinks is so beloved is tied to Italy’s other great love: the aperitivo.

In Italy, where the regions can feel as different as separate countries – they once were, after all – the aperitivo is a cultural panacea. Up there with soccer and Sunday mass, you’ll find nearly every inch of the peninsula devoted to it.

Hundreds of years of drinking

A third of vermouth, a third of gin and a third of bitters – usually Campari – makes the Negroni, but bitter drinking in Italy goes back as far as 1786, when Antonio Benedetto Carpano created the first modern-style vermouth liquor in Turin.

This ‘perfect’ combination of herbs and fortified white wine was said to open up the taste buds and stimulate the appetite, and fuelled great swathes of intellectuals meeting in Torinese cafes to sip on the stuff.

When King Vittorio Emanuele II called it his pre-dinner drink of choice, Vermouth’s reputation was cemented, and a taste for the bitter soon spread to the rest of northern Italy.

Campari arrived in Novara in 1860, just west of Milan, launching the city’s career as aperitivo capital of the world – though it would be another 50 years before Davide Campari opened Bar Camparino in the city, complete with hydraulics to bring iced soda water up to the bar.

Meanwhile, Select, the Venetian answer to Campari and a key ingredient in any proper Venetian spritz, will celebrate its own centenary next year.

Food is essential

Coming from the Latin verb “aperire,” meaning “to open” aperitivo is all about appetite-stimulating. The French “apéritif” derives from the same roots and the two are much conflated, though they shouldn’t be.

Both are warm up acts before sitting down to dinner, but the Italian aperitivo is never just a single drink. Rather it’s a period of socialising, and food is essential.

It may seem peculiar to prepare for eating and drinking with more eating and drinking, but there’s method to the Italian madness. Dinner in Italy is served late, leaving a gap between leaving work at 6pm and sitting down for a meal at 9pm.

Enter stage left: the aperitivo hour. A solution so perfectly fitted to the problem, it’s no wonder it’s spread as far south as Sicily, despite its northern roots.

You’ll even find it popping up outside Italy these days – to various degrees of accuracy. Beware the London bar that lures you in with promises of aperitivo, only to charge you for the bowl of nuts you’ve just chomped your way through. 

Useful Vocabulary:

• Apericena. Quite literally, ‘aperitivo’ combined with“cena” (dinner) for an aperitivo so sumptuous you no longer need dinner.
• Con ghiaccio. With ice – as most soft drinks in Italy tend to be served without.
• Stuzzichini. Those delicious morsels (or whacking great snacks) that accompany your drink.
• Analcolici/alcolic. Non-alcoholic or alcoholic drink choices.

More than just a drink

The roster of aperitivo drinks has come a long way from Carpano’s singular vermouth.

There’s seemingly hundreds of spritz variations to choose from, with Aperol Spritz the most popular, and mint-and-elderflower-laced Hugos a lesser known but no less quenching option. Sparkling wine is just as respectable a choice. Prosecco, Spumante, and sweet, cherry-red Fragolino all work, as does any glass of cold, crisp white wine.

According to Rebecca Winke, The Telegraph’s Italy expert, the drink choice should be immaterial: “Foreigners focus on the cocktail menu, but most Italians will carelessly order standby classics like a Negroni because they are there for the company, not the drinks.”

“Aperitivo hour embodies the essence of Italian culture,” she added. “It’s a la dolce vita lightness that veils a deep respect for the importance of human connection.

As for the Count’s Negroni? A hundred years on, it’s still a favourite but Rebecca recommends a bubblier alternative. “Though I never turn my nose up at a Negroni, my go-to aperitivo is the Negroni Sbagliato. Somehow the addition of bubbly signals to my psyche that the work day is done, and it’s time to turn my attention to the three great pillars of Italian life: family, friends, and food.”

The Rules

Aiming to aperitivo like an Italian? Here’s how:

• Aperitivo hours are from 6pm at the earliest, though more generally between 7 and 9pm. If you’re having aperitivo at a restaurant, they’ll expect you to be out before the dinner guests arrive (late-dining locals start rocking up from 9pm).
• An acceptable price range for aperitivo is €5 – 12, but bear in mind what you’ll be getting. €12 for platters of expensive meats and cheeses with your drink is not quite the same as a handful of crisps in a bowl.
• Don’t expect everywhere to do aperitivo. Instead, ask ‘fate aperitivo? A che ora?’ AKA, do you have aperitivo, and what time does it start.
• Walking in sans-reservation is most Italian, but if you’re a party of three to four people, you should probably call ahead and request a table.
• Aperitivo does not a dinner make. The plates are generally small, and while you can have as many refills as you like, it’s good form to not overload.
• The range of quality and quantity is huge. Don’t be put out if instead of pasta and sandwiches, you’re presented with peanuts (quite literally) – it’s all on the aperitivi spectrum. 
• The food is usually served without explanation, so allergy-sufferers should be sure to ask questions upfront.

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