Famous for more than just stirring a Negroni with his finger, Gary ‘Gaz’ Regan is an unofficial member of the bartending hall of fame (and only because there isn’t one). Known for bringing his touch of gold to a cocktail – as well as mixing Negronis with his index finger – it was Gary who made the Rosita cocktail famous, and he didn’t even remember doing it.
The British native had a huge impact on the bar scene, mixing up countless drinks over his career, but it was the Rosita that snuck up on him. Reading about the cocktail in an article by Terry Sullivan in the early 2000s, Gary wondered where Terry had found the recipe for this drink that carried much likeness to a Negroni (mainly with tequila in the place of gin). After some digging, Gary found it was in fact from The Bartender’s Bible – his own first book, published in 1991.
By then, Gary was a big New York bartending hot-shot with a library of books to his name. Eager to follow the cocktail’s paper train, he rummaged through his old notes and found he had taken it from the 1988 edition of the Mr. Boston Official Bartender’s Guide. Gary’s later version had more tequila, to no surprise.
For what is seemingly a simple liquor swap, the Rosita is far from simple in flavour. Smoothed by equal parts sweet and dry vermouth, there’s also a dash of orange bitters and a lemon twist to finish. Rest assured, the Rosita is anything but forgettable.
