Welcome to 5 O’Clock Somewhere, a new series in which our network of culinary all-stars share their favorite drinks—along with everything you need to serve them in style.
With the exceptions of obligatory, harshly-lit holiday dinners, my parents weren’t big on hosting. I can’t remember a single time either one of them ever had a cocktail party, let alone mixed up an actual cocktail. Still, if someone happened to stop by—because when I was growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, friends and family would, on occasion, pay an unannounced visit—each had a signature alcoholic offering in the fridge.
My mom’s was a big jug of Carlo Rossi wine—sometimes red, sometimes pink, always sweet. Across town (my parents divorced when I was young), my dad reliably had anywhere from a few cans to a full case of Bud Light.
I’m proud to say that this apple fell far from the tree—at least as far as hosting is concerned. I regularly throw parties, put a lot of thought into lighting when I do, and I’ve earned a bit of a reputation for my cocktail-making skills. In fact, that’s how I ended up with a bottomless batched Negroni in my fridge.
Last spring I was planning to visit a friend who loved my take on the drink (more on that later), so I made a big batch in an old whiskey bottle as a host gift. Plans changed and the bottle sat full in my fridge for weeks, until I had some neighbors over for a very impromptu Memorial Day porch party. I knew the cocktail wouldn’t have spoiled since it was made entirely of spirits, but with time for the flavors to meld, it had gotten even better.
Within minutes of my guests’ arrival, I was handing them speakeasy-worthy Negronis in fluted cocktail glasses with freshly-peeled orange twists.
I felt like I’d finally pulled off the kind of Martha Stewart-esque effortless entertaining that had always seemed so unattainable to me—a single, working mom with ADHD who usually panic cleans before even the most casual get-together.
I wanted to be (or at least appear), that cool, calm, and collected forever (or at least every time I had guests), so that night I washed the bottle, mixed up another batch, and put it back in the fridge.
The fridge Negroni quickly became my “house cocktail” and now I make a point of keeping the bottle full, whether I’m mixing up a fresh batch or topping off half of one.
My fellow Kansas City-based colleague, Wired’s commerce director Martin Cizmar, admits he was initially skeptical when he dropped off a product sample and I offered him a pre-mixed Negroni “from a big ol' jug.”
“I started doing the math on how this would go wrong, since batched cocktails always go a little wrong,” he says. “But, as I thought about it, there's nothing about a Negroni that prevents it from being batched—it's herbal booze with bitter booze with a little fortified booze. I took a sip and realized it was actually a genius idea. The unrelenting layered bitterness of the Negroni makes it impenetrable to age and oxygen. Three days later, I bought a bottle of Campari and my own jug.”
If, like Martin, your home bar is already pretty well stocked with gear and spirits, you might only need a few things to make your own pre-made house cocktail. But if you’re starting from scratch, here’s everything you’ll need to make—and serve—a perfectly-batched, properly bottled Negroni in style.
A sturdy, air-tight glass bottle
You can use any 750-milliliter glass bottle for a batched Negroni, but a wine bottle might not fit upright on your fridge shelf and you’ll still need to find an airtight top for it. For cocktails, I prefer a shorter—and sturdier—Nordic-style glass bottle, a normal shape for a whiskey bottle. This one even comes with a synthetic cork cap that creates a tight seal and can be washed and reused along with the bottle.
A one-cup measuring cup
A classic Negroni recipe calls for equal parts gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth, but I like to mix it up a little by substituting half of the sweet vermouth with Punt e Mes, a half-sweet, half bitter Italian vermouth. And while I could probably eyeball it well enough, this is a cocktail that benefits from perfect proportions, so I measure my ingredients with a one-cup measuring cup. I can fit three full cups into the 750-milliliter bottle above, so a one-cup measure makes this three-part cocktail nearly impossible to mess up. The small spout also makes it pretty easy to pour the measured spirits right into the bottle without using a funnel.
A cocktail stirrer
A Negroni is stirred, not shaken and this long, double-end cocktail stirrer allows you to stir the ingredients right in the bottle.
A citrus peeler
A Negroni is traditionally garnished with an orange twist, and though the cocktail itself can (and should!) be prepared ahead of time, the garnish definitely should not. A citrus peel is most fragrant when it’s freshly removed from the fruit, and if you make it too early it will dry out completely. Luckily, it’s quick and easy to get a perfect peel using a Boska cheese slicer (a little tip I learned from award-winning Portland mixologist Jeffrey Morgenthaler).
Double old-fashioned glasses
If a batched Negroni is going to become your house cocktail, it only makes sense that you’d have a set of signature, drink-appropriate glasses for serving. These fluted double old-fashioned glasses are durable and dishwasher safe, and the subtle texture makes them feel like special-occasion drinkware.
A covered ice cube tray
Last, but certainly not least: the ice. A Negroni is typically served on the rocks, and while you could use regular-old freezer ice cubes or even wonderfully-chewy nugget ice, a single, oversized cube will elevate the entire experience of the drink. It will melt more slowly than smaller ice cubes too, keeping the drinks as strong as you’d like them to be. I recommend having large cubes ready to go in the freezer at all times, but if your ice mold isn’t covered, the ice will likely absorb food smells from the freezer and the fridge, and you could end up serving a guest a cocktail with notes of last night’s leftovers. The good news is that you can keep your ice fresher longer by using an ice mold with a lid.
Ingredients for a Negroni
As I mentioned above, a classic Negroni is made with equal parts gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth (Dolin is fine but Carpano Antica Formula is even better). And if you want something a little more bitter, swap half of the sweet vermouth for Punt e Mes.
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