Americano (cocktail)

Americano

IBA Official Cocktail
Type	Mixed drink
Primary alcohol by volume	Vermouth Campari
Served	On the rocks; poured over ice
Standard garnish	half an orange slice
Standard drinkware	Old Fashioned glass
IBA specified ingredients*	3 cl Campari 3 cl red vermouth A splash of soda water
Preparation	Pour the Campari and vermouth over ice into glass, add a splash of soda water and garnish with half orange slice.

The Americano is an IBA Official Cocktail composed of Campari, sweet vermouth, and club soda. The cocktail was first served in creator Gaspare Campari's bar, Caffè Campari, in the 1860s. It was originally known as the "Milano-Torino" because of its ingredients: Campari, the bitter liqueur, is from Milan (Milano) and Punt e Mes, the vermouth, is from Turin (Torino). It is popular belief that in the early 1900s, the Italians noticed a surge of Americans who enjoyed the cocktail. As a compliment to the Americans, the cocktail later became known as the "Americano". A more unlikely explanation is that the name was derived from the word "amaro", which means "bitter" in Italian.

In popular culture

It is the first drink ordered by James Bond in the first novel in Ian Fleming's series, Casino Royale. In the short story "From a View to a Kill" Bond chooses an Americano as an appropriate drink for a mere café; suggesting that "in cafés you have to drink the least offensive of the musical comedy drinks that go with them." Bond always stipulates Perrier, for in his opinion expensive soda water was the cheapest way to improve a poor drink.

See also

• Negroni
• List of cocktails