What Is a Negroni Sbagliato? Here’s What You Need to Know.

Everyone is talking about this now-viral cocktail, the Negroni Sbagliato. But how do you make it? And how do you pronounce sbagliato?

There’s been a lot of chatter recently about a drink called the Negroni Sbagliato. Some are even saying it might replace the Aperol Spritz as the “it” cocktail of the season.

But where did this cocktail craze come from? It all began when HBO Max’s TikTok account posted a video featuring House of the Dragon stars Emma D’Arcy and Olivia Cooke. In the clip, D’Arcy’s Princess Rhaenyra says to Cooke’s Queen Alicent that her drink of choice is, “a Negroni … Sbagliato … with Prosecco in it.” The clip went viral, and now the video has almost 2 million likes on TikTok.

@hbomax I’ll take one of each. #houseofthedragon ♬ a negroni sbagliato w prosecco l hbo max – hbomax

So, What Is a Negroni Sbagliato … with Prosecco in It?

A Negroni Sbagliato is a variation of an Italian cocktail called the Negroni. In a classic Negroni recipe, you’ll find equal parts gin, vermouth and Campari, which is a red, bitter liqueur. For this variation, however, the gin is replaced with sparkling Prosecco for a lighter, bubblier drink.

The name originates from the Italian word sbagliato, which means “wrong” or “mistaken,” as in, “I messed up and mistakenly put sparkling wine in this Negroni instead of gin.” Bar Basso, in Milan, claims to have invented the cocktail.

Since most Negroni Sbalgiato cocktails are made with Prosecco, part of what made the video go viral and become meme-worthy was D’Arcy asking for her cocktail, “with Prosecco in it.” It’s sort of like saying, “I’d like a cheeseburger with cheese on it.”

How Do You Pronounce Sbagliato?

The correct way to pronounce sbagliato is “spAH-lyee-AH-toh,” with a roll of the tongue at “gli” that sounds sort of like “lyee.” It’s considered to be one of the hardest pronunciations in Italian. In the video, D’Arcy pronounced the name of the drink incorrectly (though with a flourish), which is another reason why the clip became so meme-worthy.

How Do You Make a Negroni Sbagliato?

A Negroni Sbagliato is actually a rather simple cocktail to make. So simple, in fact, that you don’t even need a shaker, just a rocks glass. Here’s how to make a Negroni Sbagliato at home to transport yourself to Italy.

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce sweet vermouth
  • 1 ounce Campari
  • 2 ounces Prosecco
  • Orange slice

Directions

Fill a rocks glass with ice. Add the vermouth and Campari, then top with the Prosecco; stir gently to combine. Garnish with orange slice.

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