The recipe
for your table
Fill a tumbler with one large ice cube or plenty of ice cubes.
Pour the Campari and vermouth over it and stir briefly.
Top with the prosecco and stir very gently one more time.
Garnish with half an orange slice.
The story
Bar Basso, Milan, the 1970s. Bartender Mirko Stocchetto was busy, reached for the wrong bottle and accidentally picked up the spumante that was standing next to it. The guest loved the result, Stocchetto honestly called his mistake 'sbagliato' - wrong - and added it to the menu. Bar Basso still serves it in its own enormous glasses to this day. When actress Emma D'Arcy named the Sbagliato as her favorite drink in an interview in 2022, search interest exploded worldwide and the happy accident got a second youth.
The right glass
In Milan, the Sbagliato is served in a large, sturdy glass - Bar Basso even uses one that's half an aquarium. At home, a generous 35 to 38 cl tumbler works perfectly: low and wide like with a classic Negroni, with room for ice and bubbles. If you want to make it more festive, you can also serve it in a stemmed wine glass. Both choices are 'rightly wrong'. If you prefer to serve it festively in a stemmed glass, take a look at our wine glasses.
RCR Alkemist Tumbler 38 cl (6 pieces)
Eclat Longchamp Tumbler 23 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets - together € 63,90.
The right tools
For a Negroni Sbagliato, besides the glass, you use a bar spoon to stir, a jigger for precise measuring, and large ice cubes. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glassware set (our choice 01) + 3 bar tools - together € 78,80.
Variations & twists
Replacing the vermouth with white port makes it softer; adding an orange slice and zest makes it even more aromatic. At Bar Basso, it is served with a huge ice cube in an enormous glass - easy to recreate at home with one large cube. The 'mistake' also takes an extra splash of soda very well. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Serving tip
Pour in the prosecco last and barely stir - the bubbles are the whole point of this 'mistake'. Also delicious as a light aperitif for anyone who finds a regular Negroni too strong.
What does sbagliato mean
Sbagliato is Italian for wrong or mistaken, referring to the way this cocktail came about. At Bar Basso in Milan, bartender Mirko Stocchetto reached for the wrong bottle in the late 1960s and poured prosecco instead of gin into the Campari and vermouth. The guest did not complain, and the mistake got a name. It is pronounced sbal-yah-toh, with the stress on the third syllable. Since the cocktail went viral on social media in 2022, it has appeared on almost every Dutch menu.
The difference from the classic Negroni
Only the third component changes: 3 cl prosecco instead of 3 cl gin, with the same 3 cl Campari and 3 cl red vermouth around it. That one ingredient changes everything. While a Negroni comes in at around 22 percent in the glass, the Sbagliato stays at approximately 11, and the bubbles lift the bitterness instead of weighing it down. You also stir it differently: twenty seconds for a Negroni, here no more than half a turn, otherwise you lose exactly the fizz that makes it work.
Which prosecco do you choose
Choose a dry prosecco labeled brut or extra dry, and make sure the bottle is ice-cold, around four degrees. A sweet spumante makes the whole thing sticky alongside the sugar already in the Campari and vermouth. Cava also works, as long as it is brut, while champagne would be a waste because its delicate yeast notes disappear beneath the bitterness. Open the bottle only once everything else is in the glass and pour along the inside edge. Half a 37.5 cl bottle is exactly enough for twelve cocktails.
How much alcohol compared with a Negroni
Prosecco is around 11 percent ABV, while gin is 40 to 47. Swap one for the other, and the strength is halved: while the classic Negroni comes out at around 22 percent in the glass, the Sbagliato ends up at 11 to 12 percent. That makes it an aperitif you can have two of without throwing the evening off balance, and explains why it is often served early in the evening in Italy. The calorie difference is smaller than you might think, because the sugar from Campari and vermouth remains.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Negroni Sbagliato?
The Negroni Sbagliato is a Negroni in which prosecco takes the place of gin: 3 cl Campari, 3 cl sweet red vermouth and 3 cl prosecco over plenty of ice, with half an orange slice. Lighter, fresher and bubbly, it originated from a mistake at Bar Basso in Milan.
What is in a Negroni?
The classic Negroni consists of equal parts gin, Campari and sweet red vermouth, so 3 cl of each. In the Sbagliato version, you only replace the gin with 3 cl of prosecco; the other two ingredients remain exactly the same. Both are served in a low, wide tumbler.
What does sbagliato mean?
Sbagliato is Italian for wrong or botched. In the 1970s, bartender Mirko Stocchetto of Bar Basso reached for the gin bottle but grabbed the spumante standing next to it instead. He honestly called his mistake sbagliato and added it to the menu, where it never disappeared.
Which glass do you use for a Negroni Sbagliato?
A generous 35 to 38 cl tumbler is ideal: low and wide, with room for plenty of ice and the bubbles. If you want to make it more festive, you can also serve it in a stemmed wine glass. Both choices are perfectly fine; see our old fashioned glasses.
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