contact us

Use the form on the right to contact us.

You can edit the text in this area, and change where the contact form on the right submits to, by entering edit mode using the modes on the bottom right.​

5218 Lawton Avenue
Oakland, CA 94114

510-654-9159

Oliver McCrum Wines has been importing small production Italian wine and distributing to fine retail and restaurant establishes throughout California since 1994. Over time, our portfolio of producers has steadily grown to over 45 producers from 15 different regions of Italy. We look for typical Italian wines with clarity and freshness, usually made from indigenous Italian grape varieties using clean, transparent winemaking techniques and no obvious use of oak. 

Cocktails

The Americano and the Milano Torino cocktails - an introduction and instructions

Michele Boscia

IMG_2389-2.jpg

The Americano is a classic and noble drink, hailing back to the year 1860 in Gaspare Campari’s bar in Milan, Italy. Made with equal parts Bitter (Campari being the most well-know brand of that category) and Sweet/Rosso Vermouth and two parts soda water.

If you prefer a more concentrated cocktail, eliminate the soda and you have a Milano-Torino, named for the cities where the original components of the drink are said to have been invented - Vermouth in Torino (Turin) and Campari in Milano (Milan).

You can completely change the flavors of this drink by changing out the elements with the goal to maintain a balance of bitter and sweet. Our series of Americani (the Italian plural of Americano) showcase the versatility of this cocktail. Sometimes using only two different spirits, sometimes adding in one more to create that perfect balance.

You’ll notice specific types of sodas, such as Cedrata (an Italian sour lemon soda that is much less sweet than Pellegrino’s Limonata or most American lemon sodas). Chinotto is an Italian soda made from the juice of bitter orange, despite it’s cola-like color. Generally, we recommend the driest (least sweet) versions of these citrus sodas that you can find so that the drink doesn’t become too sweet.

Before we begin, a quick note on ice, which is the cornerstone of every cocktail -

The often invisible, or at the very least unseen element of all cocktails, the shape and timing of the ice is absolutely essential to achieve the right dilution which is what makes you want to continue drinking the cocktail. That said, here are the particular instructions for the perfect dilution in this cocktail -

Step 1 - fill glass with ice, stir until glass is chilled, then strain the water out

Step 2 - add the ingredients in the order below

Step 3 - stir again

Step 4 - fill glass to the top with more ice

add cocktail ingredients
Build the drink in the glass and stir
Fill the glass with ice
Finish with recommended garnish

Comment
categories Low ABV, Mi-To, Vermouth Cocktails, Americano
tags Americano, Mi-To, Milano-Torino, Ice, Instructions