A Negroni with mezcal where the gin was, built on the same equal-parts spine of Campari and sweet vermouth and stirred down over a single large cube. The agave's earthy, campfire char locks onto Campari's bitter-orange bite and the vermouth's herbal sweetness, turning a bright aperitivo into something darker and more brooding, lifted at the edge by the oils of an orange peel.
Garnish: Orange Peel
Stirred · Rocks · Large Cube
add
Combine the mezcal, Campari, and sweet vermouth in a mixing glass with ice.
stir
Stir gently until well chilled and properly diluted, about 20–30 seconds.
strain
Strain into a rocks glass over a large cube of fresh ice.
express
Express the oils from an orange peel over the surface of the drink.
garnish
Drop the orange peel into the glass to serve.
No one is on record as the first to pour it — the Mezcal Negroni arose as a convergent, genericized drink of the modern cocktail revival rather than as one bartender's creation. It belongs to a long line of base-spirit swaps made on the Negroni, the gin, Campari and vermouth drink traced to Count Camillo Negroni in Florence around 1919 or 1920, a habit that has also yielded pisco, jenever and tequila versions. Mezcal entered the template by way of agave-focused bars, where bartenders carried the equal-parts formula into smokier territory.