A 2010 essay about a painful relationship unexpectedly helped popularise the Negroni, transforming the bitter Italian cocktail into a fixture on drinks menus around the world.
The Negroni has evolved from a drink favoured by cocktail enthusiasts into a year-round staple at bars and restaurants. But for Sara Vilkomerson, the writer behind the essay that helped popularise the phrase “Negroni Season,” the cocktail’s rise to fame was an unexpected consequence of a deeply personal story.
In the spring of 2010, Vilkomerson published “Negroni Season” as part of The Awl’s online series, “The Worst Boyfriend in the World.” Written under the pseudonym Evelyn Everlady, the essay recounted her experiences with an alcoholic former partner and the emotional difficulties of their relationship.
She chose to conceal her identity because her former boyfriend was intensely private and potentially vindictive. She also worried that the story might reflect poorly on her own decisions.
The events described in the essay took place in 2005, when Vilkomerson was still in her twenties and living with her boyfriend. Their relationship appeared to embody adult domestic life, complete with dinner parties, farmers’ market visits, family gatherings, Christmas trees and a shared midcentury Danish dining table.
At the time, however, the Negroni was far from the ubiquitous cocktail it would eventually become. According to Vilkomerson, American drinking culture was still emerging from the popularity of the Cosmopolitan, made famous by Sex and the City, while sweet, brightly coloured appletinis were gaining attention.
The Negroni itself dates back to 1919, when an Italian aristocrat is credited with inspiring its creation at a bar in Florence. Traditionally made with gin, Campari and sweet vermouth, the cocktail is known for its distinctive bitterness.
An essay becomes an unexpected cultural phenomenon
When “Negroni Season” was published, the drink had begun attracting greater attention, but Vilkomerson did not anticipate the response to her writing.
The essay circulated widely online, attracting comments from strangers who recognised elements of their own romantic experiences in her account. Many readers contacted her to describe similar situations, something she found surprising.
She believes the essay’s appeal may have stemmed from the universal experience of heartbreak and the uncertainty that accompanies the transition into adulthood, rather than any particular association with the cocktail.
Nevertheless, the phrase “Negroni Season” soon took on a life of its own. Within a year, hospitality businesses were using it as a marketing concept, despite there being no established agreement about when the supposed season should begin or end.
Vilkomerson also noticed a shift in drinking preferences among the people around her, with the Negroni increasingly replacing traditional choices such as the Old Fashioned.
What began as a reference in a personal essay had become a recognisable part of cocktail culture.
From the classic recipe to experimental variations
Today, the Negroni appears in countless variations, reflecting the broader trend towards experimentation in contemporary mixology.
At Dante in New York’s Greenwich Village, customers can purchase Negroni Sessions, a collection of four pre-mixed versions of the cocktail.
One popular alternative is the Negroni Sbagliato, a sparkling variation traditionally made with prosecco instead of gin. The drink gained renewed attention in 2022 after a viral video featuring actor Emma D’Arcy, who named it as their preferred cocktail.
Other interpretations incorporate additional ingredients, including Fernet-Branca and Cynar, while some bartenders substitute the traditional gin with bourbon, rum or mezcal.
More unusual creations have also appeared on cocktail menus, including coconut and fruit cake versions. Although these experiments demonstrate the drink’s versatility, Vilkomerson remains unconvinced by many of them.
Even her own mother recently ordered a non-alcoholic Phony Negroni during lunch, illustrating how the drink’s influence has extended into the growing market for alcohol-free alternatives.
Despite her reservations about its popularity, Vilkomerson acknowledges that some variations are well made. Her frustration lies less with the cocktail itself than with the way her original phrase has become detached from the personal story that inspired it.
The story behind the name
Vilkomerson has often wondered what motivated her to write the original essay. Financial constraints may have made therapy difficult to afford, while Nora Ephron’s novel Heartburn, which explores heartbreak through personal storytelling, may have influenced her decision to reclaim control of her own experiences.
She also suspects that part of her motivation was the knowledge that her former boyfriend would dislike the essay’s existence.
More than two decades after the events described in the story, the former couple have moved on. Her ex-boyfriend is now married to someone else, and the two occasionally exchange birthday greetings or interact with each other’s social media posts.
Vilkomerson has since found a kind and supportive partner. She says she has not consumed a Negroni in the 21 years since the events that inspired her essay.
Her feelings about the piece remain mixed. At times, she regrets publishing it; at others, she wishes she had attached her real name to the work.
Above all, she laments that she never found a way to turn the success of “Negroni Season” into a financial opportunity.
The cocktail, meanwhile, has achieved a longevity that its accidental literary association could hardly have predicted. What began as a metaphor for a difficult relationship has become part of the language of modern drinking culture, proving that sometimes a personal story can have a cultural impact far beyond its original intention.
