The Giacosa bar reopens in Florence, where the legendary Negroni was born

When we talk about Count Camillo, there are two types of thoughts that can be made. History lovers will think of Benso di Cavour who was the first to rule a united Italy. Mixology enthusiasts, on the other hand, will fly immediately at that bar in Florence in 1919the one in which Camillo Negroni created «his» cocktail then entered history. On the other side of that counter from over a hundred years ago was Fosco Scarselli, who punctually served the Count, a habitue as was the custom at the time, his Americano drink. Which was also American, but the truth – claimed Count Negroni, used to traveling – was that in America they drank much stronger drinks. So he asked his trusted bartender to make it a little more decisive, adding a little gin instead of seltzer.

This is in short the story of what he became Conte Negroni’s trendy Americano or, more simply, Negroni. One of the most popular cocktails ever, which was born within the four walls of a club that today is finally reborn to new life.

A hundred years ago that place was the Casoni grocery-perfume shop, a kind of luxury drugstore where drinks were also servedas Luca Picchi recounts in his book on the Negroni from which the documentary film «Looking for Negroni: in search of the Count and his fabulous cocktail». A short time later – in the Thirties – the sign changed and the historic Giacosa bar moved to the former Casoni in via Tornabuonilater bought by Roberto Cavalli and then closed, with the risk of losing a place where the history of mixology had been made, as a plaque posted some time ago recalls.

Instead today the Giacosa bar announces the reopening, with a new look and with a new management, that Valenza Group which has already relaunched two of the oldest bars in the city and in Italy, the Caffè Gilli and the legendary Caffè Paszkowski. The idea is to make heritage of the historicity of these places: for this reason the first menu of the new Giacosa, designed by the team led by Luca Manni, will be entirely dedicated to the Italian aperitif. In terms of drinks, there will be a series of twists on the classic Negroni (like the shaken Negroni or the Negroni Spritz), a space where tradition and innovation mix (like the Gibson Negroni or the Cham-on!, a personal reinterpretation of a White Negroni) and finally a line of signature of the venue.

Even the renovation, signed by the interior design architects Paolo Becagli and Alessandro Interlando, wanted resume the historical image of the place, working to return some details recovered from photos of the past. « Entering a historic place makes you feel that that place belongs to the city, provided that whoever drives it has careful management. Managing a historic venue is a job that requires great sensitivity, because it’s not just a question of preserving but of renovating while respecting its history and authenticity», commented Marco Valenza, CEO of the Group.