Campari

Thin, bright Kool-aid red. Medicinal cherry, freezer burn, orange rind, mint, sandlewood and maybe even a bit of something nutty. Quite viscous with a near perfect balance between sweet and earthy bitterness. It is less bright and less sharp than Aperol, which makes sense why the latter works well for a spritz. I think this might fall a bit flat in a spritz but goes well with whiskey, gin and possibly even mezcal.

There’s not a lot on the nose. Maybe some cherry? Or is that just the color fooling my brain? No no. Definitely some bright fruit on the nose. Sweet candy cherry. The flavor is still fruit on the tongue. But not as bright. Dull pear or apple. Then a bitter finish that I really enjoyed.

Rating: 15/23 Having tried this one a bit more in cocktails now (to the point that I've killed the bottle, I've found that theresignificantly many cases in which the string flavors here are beneficial because the really stand out. That red food coloring can often be overpowered, especially when the proportion of Campari is reduced. I'm not sure this is the best choice for a negroni, but with some powerful whiskey I like how it doesn't seem to water the flavor down and it adds a new dimension that avoids getting too muddled. I'm still not a big fan, but I like it a little better than I did previously. I think I'll give it a 15 now. Not a bad choice, but I'll keep searching for better alternatives.