293200 Wed Jun 18 00:00:13 -0700 2003 16 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1603365 A business associate gave my wife a bottle of campari for Christmas one year. The next year he asked how she liked it and she graciously said it was terrific. Here came bottle number two. Last year same question same response same result. Here came bottle number three. If this trend continues we are going to have enough to set up a bowling alley. But, not to fear, for being condo dwellers we have a 3 year use criteria we apply to everything dwelling with us. If it is not used in 3 years, it gets tossed. That is unless extinuating circustances allows the item to default to a 5 year use criteria. An item only defaults to a 7 year use criteria if it is declared an heirloom or my wife threatens mayhem if she doesn't cast her eyes on that item at least once a month. Even my beloved bar bells of my youthful days was tossed on the 5 year rule. The fact that I had to lift them to carry them to the garbage did not get me pass the 5 year use rule. The campari is now bumping up against the 3 year use rule. I have never tasted campari and can find little about it on the internet. What does one like about it. I believe it is an Italian licquor. What does it taste like and how do you drink it. I hate to toss it without even having opened it but it's time is almost up. Save the Campari, wear a yellow ribbon or clue me in with some hints. Wed Jun 18 00:00:13 -0700 2003 0 T.Davis 1 1603367 Campari is my very favorite before-dinner drink. It tastes a little like...well...a little like Listerine, if the truth be known. It's an acquired taste, I think. It's definitely not a liqueur, but an aperitif. I like it mixed with seltzer, heavy on the Campari, with a flamed twist. Others drink it with quinine water (also with a twist). And the Campari advertisements often suggest other drinks made with it, although I've never tried any of them. I like the taste of *it*, pure and simple and refreshingly bitter. Wed Jun 18 00:19:08 -0700 2003 1603365 0 Cristina 1 1603369 Club soda and OJ is a good combo with Campari. I think it's a great before and after dinner drink (with or without the OJ). Wed Jun 18 00:36:28 -0700 2003 1603365 0 Hazel 1 1603372 It's hard to describe, but I absolutely love it. Give it a taste before you get rid of it. When I first started drinking it I had it with 7-up, now that I have acquired the taste I prefer it with plain soda. Also if you are a martini drinker you might try a negroni - gin, sweet vermouth and campari, I think. And I once made an incredible Grapefruit Campari sorbet from a Deborah Madison recipe. Wed Jun 18 01:39:20 -0700 2003 1603365 0 RebeccaG 1 1603375 Love Campari On the rocks, splash or two of soda, a squeeze of fresh orange juice. Nothing better on a hot summers day. This is one of a larger group of aperitifs known collectively as "bitters." In Europe there are many varieties. Cynar, Fernet Branca, and even Jagermeister come to mind (though I hate Jager). Enjoy, or send a bottle to me ;-) Wed Jun 18 04:23:37 -0700 2003 1603365 0 StriperGuy 1 1603378 Campari is very bitter. To me, it tastes like the pith of an orange. I love it. A campari and soda is great in hot weather. I also like a vodka negroni. Give it a try! Wed Jun 18 07:04:18 -0700 2003 1603365 0 JessicaKlonsky 1 1603379 In Venice (and perhaps elsewhere in Italy) people often drink 'spritz Campari' which is a glass of proseco with Campari. The bitter of the Campari works well with the chilled and no-to-sweet proseco. I would imagine that any decent sparkling wine would do if you don't happen to have proseco available. My wife has lusted after the campari and grapefruit sorbet recipe mentioned below. I'll have to tell her it got some good press. Wed Jun 18 07:12:23 -0700 2003 1603365 0 StephenB 1 1603382 I find bitters-oriented drinks best in the summertime. Here's an interesting little column on Campari and its famous cocktail descendent, the Negroni: Link: http://www.coastnews.com/sf/negroni/negroni.htm Wed Jun 18 07:55:28 -0700 2003 1603365 0 Karl S. 2 1603476 usually I'm a wine or single malt scotch drinker; negronis are one of the few cocktails I can really say I enjoy! Wed Jun 18 18:05:34 -0700 2003 1603382 0 gourmaise 1 1603385 This might sound stupid, but since you already have a bottle or three, why not open one and taste it yourself rather than asking everyone else's opinion, which might be different than your taste? Asking for drink suggestions is a diffeent question. I personally like it just with ice and club soda. Wed Jun 18 09:17:05 -0700 2003 1603365 0 rjka 1 1603411 Signora Gruba's cocktail of choice is Campari & tonic, w lime of course. She's so sweet, the bitterness doesn't effect her. Wed Jun 18 11:45:04 -0700 2003 1603365 0 Mr Grub 1 1603424 Just curious: why haven't you tasted it? Wed Jun 18 12:31:25 -0700 2003 1603365 0 Millicent 1 1603433 Love C & soda w/lemon wedge. Actually saw it in little bottle packs in Italy years ago. Wed Jun 18 12:55:10 -0700 2003 1603365 0 Taralli 1 1603439 I like it with club soda and a twist before dinner on a hot summer night. Probably b/c reading The Little Horses of Tariquina by Marguerite Duras drove me to try it in the first place. All the main characters do during the entire novel is drink bitter campari and eat linguini and clam sauce during a hot August. Wed Jun 18 14:04:05 -0700 2003 1603365 0 LisaLou 1 1603484 If you like tonic, I think you would probably like Campari. They're both flavored with quinine, so Campari has a bitter/sweet quality similar to tonic. There's a fabulous cocktail called the Jasmine that's made with Campari, gin, Cointreau, and a lemon twist. Perfect for hot, humid evenings. Cheers, Xochitl10 Link: http://hotwired.wired.com/cocktail/98/30/index3a.html Wed Jun 18 18:44:33 -0700 2003 1603365 0 Xochitl10 1 1603487 I'm curious here. At the anointed time, are all three doomed, or only the oldest bottle? Don't tell my wife about this rule, I could lose a lot of good stuff. Should some of the elixir survive until winter when grapefruit is in season, we like pieces of them marinated in Campari (may add sugar too). Good brunch item served with a fritata or something that is savory. Wed Jun 18 19:17:02 -0700 2003 1603365 0 EP 1 1603503 To me Campari & soda (pref. with a lime) is like grown-up soda pop--the bitterness warms up my appetite but leaves me plenty ready for a nice bottle of champagne afterward. It is a perfect pre-dinner drink for almost any menu oriented toward Italian or French recipes. Wed Jun 18 21:13:29 -0700 2003 1603365 0 PayOrPlay