Negroni Sbagliato Recipe

Before you start

Sbagliato means mistaken in Italian, and the popular story is that a bartender reached for sparkling wine instead of gin. Whether or not that happened, the result is a fine drink in its own right: Campari and sweet vermouth with dry prosecco, lighter and more bubbly than a Negroni and far easier to drink in the afternoon.

This is a built drink, not a stirred one. You mix the bitter and vermouth in the glass with ice, then top with sparkling wine and fold it in with one gentle lift. Choose a dry (brut) prosecco or other sparkling wine; sweeter styles tip the drink into cloying territory, because the vermouth already brings plenty of sugar.

Ingredients

• 30 ml (1 oz) Campari
• 30 ml (1 oz) sweet vermouth
• 60 ml (2 oz) dry prosecco — brut, well chilled
• to fill the glass ice cubes — or one large cube
• 1 slice orange

Method

1. Chill the prosecco for at least 3 hours beforehand, or 20 minutes in an ice bucket filled with ice and water. Warm wine foams over and goes flat.
2. Fill a rocks glass with ice, or set one large cube in it.
3. Add the Campari and sweet vermouth and stir with the bar spoon for about 10 seconds to chill and mix them.
4. Tilt the glass slightly and pour the prosecco slowly down the side until it reaches about 60 ml.
5. Lift the ice once from the bottom with the spoon so the wine mixes in. Garnish with an orange slice and serve at once.

Tips for success

• Open the prosecco just before you build the drink and reseal it with a sparkling wine stopper if you plan to make more.
• Look for brut or extra brut labels. Extra dry, confusingly, is sweeter than brut.
• For a stronger wine flavor, increase the prosecco to 90 ml and serve in a large wine glass.

Substitutions

Prosecco

Cava or another dry, fruity sparkling wine works well. Champagne adds toasty notes and more acidity.

Campari

Aperol gives a sweeter, softer version that leans toward a spritz.

Sweet vermouth

A bianco vermouth makes a paler, more floral Sbagliato; reduce it to 22 ml if it is very sweet.

Variations

Long Sbagliato

Serve in a highball with 90 ml prosecco and 30 ml soda water for a lighter, longer drink.

Rosé Sbagliato

Use a dry sparkling rosé for red fruit notes.

Troubleshooting

The drink foams over the rim

The wine was not cold enough or was poured straight down onto the ice. Chill it thoroughly and pour down the side of a tilted glass.

No bubbles after a minute

It was stirred too hard after the wine went in. Mix with a single gentle lift instead.

It tastes sugary

Use a brut sparkling wine and a less sweet vermouth, or add a lemon peel.

Storage

Serve immediately. Opened sparkling wine with a proper stopper keeps its fizz in the fridge for 1 to 3 days.

Safety notes

Contains Campari, vermouth and wine adding up to about 1 U.S. standard drink (about 14 g of pure alcohol). Serve only to adults of legal drinking age, and do not drink and drive.