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This classic Americano Cocktail is made with Campari, sweet vermouth, and splash of soda water. It’s also a favorite drink of James Bond, but only if you use Perrier for the fizz.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
Ingredient notes
- Campari: This Italian liqueur is extremely bitter with notes of cherry, cinnamon, clove, and orange peel.
- Sweet vermouth: A fortified wine (made from grapes) that tastes sweet and bitter with notes of botanicals (herbs, roots, and barks) and caramel.
- Soda water: Club soda, seltzer water, or mineral water all work here. James Bond insisted on Perrier, saying expensive soda water was the cheapest way to improve a poor drink.
Step-by-step instructions
- Fill a high-ball glass with ice. Add Campari and sweet vermouth. Using a bar spoon, stir to combine.
- Top with club soda and gently pull up Campari mixture to the top, gently stirring to combine. Garnish with an orange slice and lemon twist and serve.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes 1 cocktail.
- Glassware: The Americano is traditionally made in a highball glass, an 8-ounce to 12-ounce glass tumbler such as a Collins glass.
- Big batch: To make a batch of 8 cocktails, combine 12 ounces (1 ½ cups) Campari and 12 ounces (1 ½ cups) sweet vermouth in a pitcher. Have ice, soda water, glassware, and garnishes on hand so guests can help themselves.
- Negroni: The other famous Campari cocktail, a Negroni skips the soda water and instead uses gin (in the same amount as the Campari and sweet vermouth). Garnish with an orange twist or wedge.
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Americano Cocktail
This classic Americano cocktail is made with Campari, sweet vermouth, and splash of soda water. It's also a favorite drink of James Bond, but only if you use Perrier for the fizz.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces Campari (3 tablespoons, see note 1)
- 1 1/2 ounces sweet vermouth (3 tablespoons, see note 2)
- club soda , soda water, or seltzer, chilled, for topping (see note 3)
- 1 orange slice and/or 1 lemon twist, for garnish
Instructions
- Fill a high-ball glass with ice. Add Campari and sweet vermouth. Using a bar spoon, stir to combine.
- Top with club soda and gently pull up Campari mixture to the top, gently stirring to combine. Garnish with an orange slice and lemon twist and serve.
Notes
- Campari: This Italian liqueur is extremely bitter with notes of cherry, cinnamon, clove, and orange peel.
- Sweet vermouth: A fortified wine (made from grapes) that tastes sweet and bitter with notes of botanicals (herbs, roots, and barks) and caramel.
- Seltzer: Club soda, seltzer water, or mineral water all work here. James Bond insisted on Perrier, saying expensive soda water was the cheapest way to improve a poor drink.
- Yield: This recipe makes 1 cocktail.
- Glassware: The Americano is traditionally made in a highball glass, an 8-ounce to 12-ounce glass tumbler such as a Collins glass.
- Big batch: To make a batch of 8 cocktails, combine 12 ounces (1 ½ cups) Campari and 12 ounces (1 ½ cups) sweet vermouth in a pitcher. Have ice, soda water, glassware, and garnishes on hand so guests can help themselves.
- Negroni: The other famous Campari cocktail, a Negroni skips the soda water and instead uses gin (in the same amount as the Campari and sweet vermouth). Garnish with an orange twist or wedge.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 cocktailCalories: 185kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 1gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 2mgPotassium: 174mgFiber: 3gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 55IUVitamin C: 65mgCalcium: 34mgIron: 1mg
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Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.