The PDT Project: Berlioni

When creating cocktails, bartenders draw inspiration from a wide array of sources. The most common of those sources are other bartenders and other classic cocktails of the past. Today's cocktail, the Berlioni, draws inspiration from both another bartender and a classic cocktail. Berlin-based bartender Gonçalo de Sousa created the Berlioni as a twist on the classic Negroni cocktail, supplanting the bitterness of Campari with that of the another Italian amaro, Cynar, and using dry instead of sweet vermouth. The inspiration to combine Cynar and dry vermouth in his Negroni variation was bartender Chad Solomon's Bensonhurst cocktail, which is itself a variation on the classic Brooklyn cocktail, which is a variation on the classic Manhattan.

Berlioni
1.5 oz. Tanqueray Gin
0.75 oz. Cynar
0.5 oz Noilly Prat Dry Vermouth
orange twist, as garnish

Tools: barspoon, mixing glass, strainer
Glass: chilled rocks glass

Method: Place the biggest hunk of ice that can fit into your chilled rocks glass. Stir ingredients in mixing glass with ice and strain into the rocks glass. Twist the orange peel over the drink to release its oils and place in drink as garnish.

If you enjoy a Negroni it means you probably enjoy bitter cocktails, and you'll probably enjoy the Berlioni. The difference is the Berlioni is more dry and a little more bitter, although it functions as a fantastic aperitif cocktail just as the Negroni does.

*This post is part of a series in which Payman takes on the task of making and writing about every cocktail featured in the PDT Cocktail Book, as well as providing an awesome photo of each drink taken by Vanessa Bahmani Photography.

**Got a question? He can be found on twitter @paystyle, you can email him at payman@pdtproject.com, or simply drop him a comment below.