Premium barrel aged Negroni
About The 924 Negroni
Producing a cocktail that ages perfectly requires a similar approach to making a fine red wine that is designed for cellaring.
We needed a robust gin with backbone, and a fruit-packed vermouth to marry with the bitterness of Campari and create a base cocktail that would stand up to the smoothing effect barrel ageing and a little oxidisation has on the sharper edges of a Negroni that make up its very essence.
Perfecting our Negroni would take a further six months, which offered plenty of time to source barrels, bottles, corks and of course, a liquor licence.
Today The 924 Negroni is still blended, aged, blended once again and bottled entirely by hand in our production facility located in the heart of leafy Camberwell, just 10 minutes from Melbourne, and we consider it be a genuine reflection of the way we try to live our lives – Support the ones you love, never accept average and always keep it fun.
The 924 Negroni ingredients
Campari
Campari is Campari. You can’t change it, you can’t approximate it and no matter how wonderful your bitters are, to swap out Campari would be to deny the very Italian heritage that is intrinsic to the cocktail. Our one non-negotiable in the quest to make the best possible Negroni was no compromises on ingredients, and without Campari there is no Negroni. End of story.
Vermouth
By far the strongest determinant of a Negroni’s flavour profile is vermouth and we found maintaining the citrus nature of the drink in the face of so many options from which to build complexity a real challenge.
After much trial and pleasurable tribulation we agreed on a fruit-forward, bitter blend from a number of producers. Very reminiscent of marmalade when unaged, our vermouth ensures the finished product retains the necessary bittersweet punch that a Negroni requires, despite spending around two months in the barrel.
Gin
The global renaissance of the gin industry is showing no signs of abating and with more than 500 Australian distilleries at the time of writing, we had a great opportunity to include some Australian product whilst remaining totally true to the recipe.
Victoria’s award winning Original Spirit Co. is a family owned and operated distillery that produces a top quality, robust dry gin from the Mornington Peninsula that has won gold in a number of the world’s top wine and spirits competitions, including Hong Kong and San Francisco.
Distilled with native, foraged, seasonal botanicals to make small batches of aromatic, coriander-driven gin, we are very proud to have an Australian backbone to The 924 Negroni.
The ageing process
Producing a cocktail that ages perfectly requires a similar approach to making a fine red wine that is designed for cellaring.
Our 20 and 50 litre barrels are made by hand in the Barossa by a French-trained cooper and long-time family friend. Unsurprisingly we use French oak, reclaimed from wineries, recoopered and toasted to a medium char.
Whilst the flavours imparted by the barrels are subtle, they are clearly identifiable, as are the effects of a little oxidisation, which results in the complex and concentrated flavours that make The 924 Negroni so special.
The 924 Negroni is bottled under cork to continue maturing. Keep an eye on our events page for the next Negroni Night, where you can sample some of our aged products, or work you way around the “World in a Negroni Glass” with one of our tasting paddles.
Serving the 924 Negroni
Serve The 924 Negroni chilled to avoid the dilution that comes from stirring.
A freshly made Negroni sits at around 27% alcohol by volume (ABV), and the process of stirring through ice dilutes the otherwise ‘hot’ beverage to its normal drinking strength of around 20% ABV.
The 924 Negroni is undiluted, however through the ageing process a little more alcohol than water is evaporated, resulting in a final ABV of 24.9%. The passage of time also takes the heat out of The 924 Negroni, making it ready to drink and no stirring required.
Pour your chilled 924 Negroni straight into a rocks glass over a single, large, crystal clear ice cube. Not only does it look amazing, a larger cube will also melt much slower than a handful of small ice cubes, and a sphere will melt even slower!
Garnish with a twist of orange peel.
Under no circumstances forget the orange.
The bright, oily richness of a freshly twisted piece of orange peel really takes The 924 Negroni to the top level. Remove the bitter pith, twist the peel over your glass and watch the orange oils burst and bring a fresh, citrus counterpoint to the opulent richness of your cocktail.
In summer or when spritzing, an orange wedge is perfectly fine and will impart a slightly lighter and fruitier finish.
Storing The 924 Negroni
The 924 Negroni is ready to drink when it is bottled, and if you intend to open within 12 months, it can be stored in your liquor cabinet.
Bottled under cork and with vermouth being one third of the blend, The 924 Negroni will develop and improve over time. If intending to keep for more than a year, it is recommended The 924 Negroni is stored a wine fridge, alongside your best wines.
Once open, there is also no rush. The 924 Negroni will not deteriorate quickly, although we do recommend moving to the fridge if it wasn’t already kept there, and consuming within a month or two of opening.
