Vermouth, stirred
Bitter Giuseppe
Barline 2,1,q,6,Rl
The code is the shorthand off my printed menu; the Key tab decodes every letter.
- 2 oz Cynar
- 1 oz Sweet vermouth
- 1/4 oz Lemon juice
- 6 dashes Orange bitters
Stir with ice until cold, then strain.
Rocks, iced, lemon twist.
Taste
Two ounces of Cynar, an ounce of sweet vermouth, a quarter of lemon, six dashes of orange bitters. No base spirit, so it is low proof, and artichoke bitterness runs the whole length of it with the vermouth holding what sugar there is. The quarter ounce of lemon is the odd part, and it is what keeps the Cynar from going flat. Rocks with ice, lemon twist.
History
Stephen Cole made the Bitter Giuseppe at The Violet Hour in Chicago in 2007, when an Italian chef came into the bar and Cole guessed he would want a Cynar Manhattan, built with Carpano Antica. It came out sweet, so he added lemon juice, which a stirred spirit drink was not supposed to take, and kept adjusting until he had a quarter ounce of lemon and six dashes of orange bitters. He credits the Ti' Punch of Martinique for the idea that citrus belongs in a stirred glass, and tells the story in The Bartender's Manifesto in 2022. This menu pours two ounces of Cynar, an ounce of sweet vermouth, a quarter of lemon, and six dashes of orange bitters, stirred, rocks with ice, lemon twist.
Same shape, other bottles
The Negroni family, with the bottle that changed.
- Cin-Cynwith gin
- Kingston NegroniCampari for Cynar
- Mezcal NegroniCampari for Cynar
- NegroniCampari for Cynar
- Old Paldry vermouth and Campari for sweet vermouth and Cynar
- RositaCampari for Cynar
This is one drink on my home bar's menu. Tick the bottles you own and the menu lists which of all 185 drinks they pour.