British magazine TimeOut selected the best 36 cocktails in the world for 2019 and a Greek one was number one.
As the article writes: “Our countdown of the world’s best cocktails spans 27 cities in 18 countries. Alongside the USA (the most cocktail-loving nation, according to our Time Out Index survey) you’ll find creations from the best bars in Singapore, Paris, Mexico City and loads more mixological hotspots. Some are simply straight-up classics. (For each of these, we’ve recommended the best bar in the world to taste it – which often happens to be the very place where that drink was invented and perfected, like the Negroni Sbagliato at Bar Basso, Milan.) Other entries are madcap mixological creations from the boozy dreams of the world’s best bartenders, at institutions like The Aviary in New Yorkand SG Club in Tokyo.”
It goes on to present the magazine’s top choice from Greece called “The Aegean Negroni”, which is served at the famous Athens bar The Clumsies.
Aegean Negroni – The Clumsies
Greece is currently experiencing a cocktail revolution, with a raft of young bartenders experimenting with local products such as tsikoudia, raki, mastika, local herbs, honey, and even olives and yoghurt. Started by Nikos Bakoulis and Vasilis Kyritsis in a run-down neoclassical building in the midst of the Greek recession, The Clumsies is a paean to these fresh products and local-specific flavours. Its subtly explosive Aegean Negroni is as blue as the glittering Aegean sea, and uses the bar’s own spiced gin plus white vermouth, Martini bitters and Martini Ambrato. Fennel seeds and fragrant dittany (a herb which only grows on the island of Crete) gives this refreshingly bitter cocktail its distinctive, unmistakably Mediterranean savour. Heidi Fuller-Love
The complete list of the 36 best cocktails to look for on your next trip:
1. Aegean Negroni – The Clumsies, Athens
2. Peranakan – Native, Singapore
3. All Hail The Queen – The Baldwin Bar, Boston
4. Searching For The Emerald Sea – The Aviary, New York
5. No 1 Cup – The SG Club, Tokyo
6. Omiero – Hotel Casa Awolly, Mexico
7. Mirror Margarita – Hacha, London
8. Spiced Rusty Cherry – Red Frog, Lisbon
9. Margarita OK! – Cantina OK, Sydney
10. The Sun Also Rises – The Old Man, Hong Kong
11. Tequilini – Eatery Social Taqueria, Malmo
12. Piña Colada – Sweet Liberty, Miami
13. Martini – Dukes Bar, London
14. Green Ant Negroni – Wildflower, Per
15. Tequila Verde – Clooney Kitchen and Bar, Melbourne
16. Smoked Chai Manhattan – OAK Long Bar + Kitchen, Boston
17. Martini – Musso & Frank Grill, Los Angeles
18. Tiki Bandit – Frankie’s Tiki Room, Las Vegas
19. Kimchi – Mace, New York
20. Cyn Tonic – Florería Atlantico, Buenos Aires
21. Loos Coffee – Loos American Bar, Vienna
22. Buenos Aires Zombie – Presidente Bar, Buenos Aires
23. Robbery At The Museum – Smoke & Mirrors, Singapore
24. Explosive – Le Syndicat, Paris
25. Jungle Bird – Omakase + Appreciate, Kuala Lumpur
26. Camp Nou – Dr Stravinsky, Barcelona
27. Space Juice For Jered – Punch House, Chicago
28. Bloody Sanluqueño – Angelita, Madrid
29. Sgroppino – Swift, London
30. Caipirinha Três Limões – Bar Veloso, Sao Paulo
31. Boulevardier 29 – Cravan, Paris
32. Negroni Sbagliato – Bar Basso, Milan
33. The Egg – Operation Dagger, Singapore
34. Black Velvet – Arthur’s Pub, Dublin
35. Boozy Apple – Peppi’s Cellar, New York
36. Irish Coffee – Buena Vista Cafe, San Francisco
