I had a cocktail recently at Wonderbar in Beacon that I liked so much I had to make note of it here.

It was called the Red Baron, made with gin, Cocchi di Torino, Averna, Aperol, and lime and from the minute I read the ingredients, it pretty much screamed Negroni-inspired to me. Not in a subtle way either. This felt like a drink created by someone who clearly started with a Negroni in mind, then decided to take it somewhere else. And I’m glad they did.

You’ve got the gin, of course. You’ve got the sweet vermouth role handled by Cocchi di Torino. You’ve got bitter Italian complexity coming from Aperol and Averna instead of the usual Campari-centered approach. Then the lime comes in and changes the shape of the whole thing, giving it a brighter, slightly more playful edge.

So no, this is not a Negroni. But it absolutely comes from Negroni thinking.

That’s part of what made it so appealing to me. It had that bittersweet, herbal, beautifully structured quality that Negroni drinkers recognize right away, but it wasn’t trying to be a copy. It was more like a riff with its own point of view. And it was delicious. The flower blossom garnish made it a delight.

Wonder Bar felt like the right place for a drink like that. Stylish but comfortable, serious enough to make a proper cocktail, but not so serious that the whole thing feels overthought. The Red Baron managed that same balance. Interesting, well built, and easy to enjoy without needing a lecture about it.

I’m always happy to meet a drink that honors the Negroni without just repeating it. The Red Baron does exactly that. It starts in familiar territory, then heads off in its own direction.A very good direction, I should add. Wonderbar.com