This Italian Americano cocktail will have you living “la dolce vita” in no time.
The perfect summer cocktail is cold, refreshing and easy to make. Let’s face it—when it’s hot out, the last thing you want to do is fuss around with a bunch of ingredients and measurements. The three-ingredient Americano cocktail hits all the right marks. It’s a touch bitter and more complex than fruity drinks, yet the soda keeps it fun and light.
What is an Americano?
Though it shares a name with an espresso drink, the Americano cocktail has nothing to do with its caffeinated cousin (aside from its Italian origins). Credit for the creation of this Italian cocktail goes to Gaspare Campari, a bar owner in Milan, Italy. Yes, as you might have guessed, he is also the creator of the Campari aperitif! The eponymous Italian liqueur has a bitter flavor that’s unmistakable. It’s rounded out with herbal, orange and floral notes.
Campari created his Americano cocktail in the 1860s as a riff on another popular cocktail he served at Caffe Campari, called a Milano-Torino. The Milano-Torino is made with equal parts Campari (from Milan) and sweet vermouth (from Torino). The addition of soda water turns a Milano-Torino into an Americano. The resulting cocktail is sweet, bitter, bubbly and incredibly refreshing.
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