Vespergroni

This is the sort of totally unlikely event that could only arise in my imagination: James Bond meets Count Camillo Negroni in a bar. like The Haflington in, Hanoi Vietnam, where grapefruit grows in abundance.

That is pretty much the spirit of this drink.

I called it the Vespergroni because it began as a riff on the Vesper and then drifted, happily, into Negroni territory. Not in any pure or proper way. Just the way cocktails sometimes do when you start with one idea, follow your nose, and end up somewhere unexpected.

The Vesper side brings the familiar cool of gin and vodka, with sweet Dolin Blanc stepping in for the usual aromatized wine role. But then the Negroni instinct takes over with Cappelletti instead of Campari, which gives the drink bitterness in a gentler, rounder, more wine-soaked way. Add fresh grapefruit juice and a couple dashes of black lemon bitters, and the whole thing shifts into brighter, stranger, more sunlit territory.

What I like most is that it should not quite work, at least not on paper. A Vesper is lean and direct. A Negroni is bitter and composed. Grapefruit opens the windows, and the black lemon bitters bring a darker citrus note that keeps it all from getting too pretty. Somehow it holds together. It is vivid, bitter, aromatic, and a little unusual in exactly the right way.

This is not Bond at the casino. This is Bond on a detour. And Count Negroni, were he to join him, might look skeptical at first, then quietly order a second.

Recipe: Vespergroni

• 1 ounce gin of course Harris from Scotland – Sean would insist.
• 1 ounce vodka – any will do
• 3/4 ounce Cappelletti
• 3/4 ounce Dolin Blanc
• 1 ounce fresh grapefruit juice
• 2 dashes Srappy’s black lemon bitters

Shake with ice until very cold, then strain into a chilled coupe or Nick & Nora. Garnish with a grapefruit twist if you have one.

Totally improbable. Slightly absurd. And very good to drink.