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Slightly Pretentious

Great Cocktails. Spectacular Stays. Only Slightly Pretentious.

How to Make a Rum Negroni: The Artsy Bird is a Funky Rum Cocktail

March 7, 2020 by Sean 4 Comments

Funky Rum Negroni
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

I like spirit forward drinks.

And when I’m at home and just looking for a fun night cap on a Thursday night, I don’t want to spend hours trying to craft something crazy.

Three ingredients, four max.

Easy.

That’s just one of the many reasons why I love the negroni.

It’s got a fantastic bitter, complex flavor, but more importantly: it’s about as easy to make as it gets.

Here’s exactly how I make my negronis.

But bottom line, take all the ingredients, put them in a mixing glass, stir and strain into whatever glass suits your fancy.

Up? Cube? You do you – both work!

But sometimes you want something a little different. A little funkier. A little…weirder – and you want it without having to take 20 minutes to make it.

Enter the Artsy Bird: A Funky Rum Negroni

One of the coolest things about the negroni is just how easy it is to do variations.

Switch out gin for bourbon and you have a boulevardier.

Or you can do a smoky mezcal negroni by adding that instead. It works well with just about any base spirit. Speaking of Mezcal, check out the Smoking Banana, a unique 3 ingredient smoky/old fashioned style cocktail.

Lately I’ve been really drawn to rum. Weird rums. Funky rums.

Smith and Cross.

Doctor Bird.

Cool Martinique rhums.

So I’ve taken my love for the negroni and flipped it a bit. After all, apparently the negroni is the signature drink of my home state of Oregon? Who knew.

Artsy Bird: A Rum Negroni Variation

How to Make a Rum Negroni: Making an Artsy Bird

It’s not uncommon to see people do a Kingston Negroni that switches out gin for Smith and Cross, which is fantastic.

To differentiate mine, I went a different direction.

Instead of the Smith and Cross I use a slightly less funky Jamaican rum called Doctor Bird.

And then I switch out the Campari for the dark, herbal, and bitter artichoke liqueur Cynar.

And because both of those are such strong flavors you can use the bold Antica Formula vermouth to balance it out and create a super unique, bitter, delicious dark drink.

I add a dash of orange bitters, and two dashes of chocolate bitters, and an expressed orange peel for garnish.

You’re left with a really interesting drink, that only takes a couple minutes to make. I love super elaborate cocktails as much as the next person. But let’s be real, most home bartenders aren’t looking for a long process. They want something simple and delicious they can drink themselves or serve to their guests, and I think the Artsy Bird makes for the perfect after dinner cocktail.

Tried it? Let me know what you think!

The Artsy Bird is a funky rum negroni variation with sweet vermouth, Doctor Bird rum and Cynar.

Artsy Bird: A Rum Negroni Variation

The Artsy Bird is a funky variation on a negroni using rum instead of gin, and Cynar instead of Campari
Print Recipe
CourseDrinks
CuisineItalian
Keywordscarpano antica, cynar,, doctor bird
GlassNick and Nora
DifficultyEasy
Total Time5 minutes
Servings1 Drink
Calories195kcal
Cost$3

Equipment

  • Mixing Glass
  • Vegetable Peeler
  • Bar Spoon
  • Hawthorne Strainer

Ingredients

  • 1 oz Doctor Bird Rum
  • 1 oz Cynar
  • 1 oz Carpano Antica
  • 1 Dash Orange Bitters I use Reagans
  • 2 Dashes Chocolate Bitters I use Scrappys
  • 1 Orange (For Garnish)
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Combine all ingredients into a mixing glass
  • Add ice, and stir until chilled
  • Strain into a Nick and Nora Glass
  • Express an orange peel over top of drink, wipe rim with it, and drop in drink.

Notes

This rum negroni recipe is super versatile depending on what you like. I specifically enjoy this served up in a coupe or Nick and Nora glass. But you could just as easily put it in a rocks glass over a big cube. You can swtich out the Doctor Bird for any Jamaican Rum. You can switch out the Cynar for Campari. You do you.

Nutrition

Calories: 195kcal

Filed Under: Cocktail Recipes Tagged With: cynar, negroni, rum

About Sean

Sean has spent the last decade teaching people how to build small businesses, playing golf, and sneaking into high class establishments where he probably doesn't belong. Slightly pretentious is a tongue in cheek description of his travels.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Rosie says

    November 26, 2020 at 1:00 pm

    3 stars
    It’s a yummy recipe but please write recipes using the generic spirit names, not brand names. It’s annoying to have to look up all these brands and find what I have that is equivalent. It’s super easy to write 1 oz amaro (I used Cynar).

    Reply
    • Sean says

      November 28, 2020 at 9:24 am

      Thanks Rosie, appreciate the comment! But not all amaros are the same. You would have a completely different drink if you used say Fernet, or Aperol in this. So Cynar is a very specific ingredient for this cocktail. Not to say it wouldnt work well with other amaros, but you just have something different. If you used something specific to sub, I’d love to hear what it was and how it turned out!

      Reply
  2. David James says

    August 13, 2021 at 2:04 pm

    5 stars
    Perfection. Just had my second. It’s on my A list.

    Reply
    • Sean says

      August 19, 2021 at 3:32 pm

      Thanks David! Really appreciate it!

      Reply

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