by Joseph Levendusky Summer is on the horizon and as it draws near it comes time to make our obeisances to Count Negroni with the cocktail in hand that bears his name. Though origin stories are greatly in dispute, according to the dominant legend sometime in 1919 Count Camillo de Negroni swaggered into the Caffè Casoni in Florence, Italy and asked for his usual cocktail—the Americano—but with a bit of added kick. To take the edge off the good Count’s mood, the solicitous bartender, Fosco Scarselli, substituted one part gin for the Americano’s soda water and garnished it with orange to signify a new drink. A star was born. The Americano was comprised…
