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Classic Americano Cocktail Recipe

Name: Classic Americano Cocktail Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Yield: 1 cocktail
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 1 ½ ounces Campari; 1 ½ ounces sweet vermouth; 3 ounces soda water; Orange slice or lemon twist, for garnish

Written by MasterClass

Last updated: Jun 3, 2026 • 1 min read

Campari is an essential ingredient in many classic cocktails including the Negroni and the Garibaldi. The bittersweet liqueur mixes well with other spirits and tastes delicious on its own. The Americano is a relatively simple Campari cocktail that is light and refreshing and makes for a perfect summertime beverage.

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What Is the History of the Americano Cocktail?

The Americano cocktail dates back to the 1860s when Gaspare Campari, an Italian bartender who created the Campari apéritif, mixed some sweet vermouth with his signature liqueur. He called the drink the “Milano-Torino” to pay tribute to the origins of its ingredients: the Campari aperitivo came from Milan and the vermouth came from Turin.

Over time, bartenders at Gaspare Campari’s bar experimented by adding club soda to the drink, leading to the bubbly version of the cocktail that we drink today. The Milano-Torino was popular with American ex-pats around the time of prohibition, hence it came to be known as the “Americano.”

Americano Cocktail Recipe

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makes

1 cocktail

prep time

5 min

total time

5 min

Ingredients

1 ½ ounces Campari
1 ½ ounces sweet vermouth
3 ounces soda water
Orange slice or lemon twist, for garnish

1
Pour Campari and sweet vermouth into a highball glass filled with ice.
2
Top with a splash of soda water.
3
Garnish with an orange slice or lemon twist.

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