The Negroni is one of the most elegant classic cocktails. It has quite an elaborate flavor profile, and the intriguingly bittersweet taste makes you either love or hate the drink. To achieve this distinct taste in a non-alcoholic Negroni is a challenge. But one we happily accepted, and here's our favorite approach to a NOgroni:
Equipment
- 1 Mixing glass
- 1 Bar spoon
- 1 Hawthorne Strainer
Ingredients
- 1 oz Monday zero alcohol Gin - (or another non-alcoholic Gin alternative)
- 1 oz Versin
- 1 oz Giffard Sirop Aperitif
Instructions
- Pour all three ingredients into a mixing glass and fill it up with ice until it's 2/3 full.1 oz Monday zero alcohol Gin, 1 oz Versin, 1 oz Giffard Sirop Aperitif
- Stir for 18-25 seconds (about 50 times), then strain the Mocktail into a rocks glass, or your preferred Negroni glassware, over a large ice cube.
- Express orange peel over the drink and discard it into the glass.
Nutrition
Taste of A Non-Alcoholic Negroni
Our Negroni Mocktail doesn't have the booze of the classic version but is almost as complex in flavor - not quite the same, of course. But close enough.
You get herbaceous notes, sweetness, and spices from the zero-proof alternatives for gin and vermouth. To get the characteristic bittersweet, orangy taste of Campari into the mix, you have to be a little creative - but with the help of an aperitif syrup from Giffard, you can achieve a comparable flavor profile.
Ingredients with Recommendations for a Non-Alcoholic Negroni
The original is a simple cocktail with only three ingredients: gin, sweet vermouth, and Campari - easy. However, you can see that all of these three contain alcohol. Hence, making a non-alcoholic Negroni is complicated as you need to replace all three.
Fortunately, more and more alcohol-free spirits and liqueur alternatives are entering the market, making this task somewhat more achievable. After all, our Virgin Negroni version is supposed to taste as much like the boozy, bittersweet real deal as possible.
Non-Alcoholic Gin Alternative for our NOgroni
It is not a problem to find a non-alcoholic alternative to gin. Now, even major Gin brands like Gordons and Tanqueray offer alcohol-free versions of their products.
Our favorite choice for this recipe is Monday - it is a fantastic replacement for a classic dry gin and works perfectly well with the other two ingredients of our Negroni Mocktail.
Non-Alcoholic Vermouth
Finding a non-alcoholic substitute for sweet vermouth is trickier. Most options available taste too watery and far from a regular vermouth with alcohol.
The only suitable option we found works quite well in a Negroni Mocktail is Versin. If you cannot find it or have other reasons to look for an alternative, the next-best prospect would be Lyre's Aperitif Rosso.
Non-Alcoholic Campari
There's no actual non-alcoholic substitute for Campari at this point. Giffard's Aperitif Syrup was recommended by various sources - and it does work. The syrup tastes bittersweet with some orange notes that, indeed, remind us of Campari when used in this recipe.
More Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Recipes
If you want to try more zero-proof drinks that are more than just a mix of juices thrown together, try these mocktail recipes: