This Italian Americano cocktail will have you living "la dolce vita" in no time.
This 3-Ingredient Americano Is the Only Drink You Need This Summer
Published on May 09, 2025
The perfect summer cocktail is cold, refreshing and easy to make. Let’s face it—when it’s hot out, the last thing you want to do is fuss around with a bunch of ingredients and measurements. The three-ingredient Americano cocktail hits all the right marks. It’s a touch bitter and more complex than fruity drinks, yet the soda keeps it fun and light.
What is an Americano?
Though it shares a name with an espresso drink, the Americano cocktail has nothing to do with its caffeinated cousin (aside from its Italian origins). Credit for the creation of this Italian cocktail goes to Gaspare Campari, a bar owner in Milan, Italy. Yes, as you might have guessed, he is also the creator of the Campari aperitif! The eponymous Italian liqueur has a bitter flavor that’s unmistakable. It’s rounded out with herbal, orange and floral notes.
Campari created his Americano cocktail in the 1860s as a riff on another popular cocktail he served at Caffe Campari, called a Milano-Torino. The Milano-Torino is made with equal parts Campari (from Milan) and sweet vermouth (from Torino). The addition of soda water turns a Milano-Torino into an Americano. The resulting cocktail is sweet, bitter, bubbly and incredibly refreshing.
How to Make an Americano Cocktail
The ingredient list for an Americano cocktail is simple. For the alcohol, you’ll need a bottle of Campari and a bottle of sweet vermouth. While Campari is fairly shelf-stable, you’ll want to use the freshest possible sweet vermouth for the best flavor. Because sweet vermouth at its heart is a fortified wine, it begins to lose its flavor within a month of opening (even when stored properly in the refrigerator). For the soda water, use unflavored sparkling water or, for added flavor, use sparkling mineral.
An Americano is typically served in a highball glass, but if you prefer less soda water, serve it in a lowball or rocks glass. To make the cocktail, fill your serving glass with ice. Then add 1 to 1-1/2 ounces of Campari and an equal amount of sweet vermouth. Top with soda water, and stir gently to combine. For a little pizzazz, garnish with an orange peel twist.
Americano Cocktail Fun Facts
- Although he is most associated with the martini (shaken, not stirred!), the first cocktail that James Bond ever orders is an Americano in Casino Royale (1953). The suave spy preferred his Americano be made with Perrier.
- The Americano is known as the father of the Negroni cocktail, which replaces the soda water with gin.
Related:
