My Bar Bible / Cocktails / Contessa

Contessa in a coupe, drawn with its ingredient layers

Contessa recipe

StirredCoupeNo ice18% ABV

The Contessa is a stirred gin cocktail, made with gin, Aperol and dry vermouth, served in a coupe. It is bitter.

Strength: about 18% ABV in the glass, roughly 16 g of alcohol and about 170 calories per drink (an estimate; brands, sugar and dilution vary).

John Gertsen, Boston: a pale, bittersweet Negroni with Aperol and dry vermouth.

Contessa ingredients

Gin30 ml (1 oz)
Aperol30 ml (1 oz)
Dry vermouth30 ml (1 oz)

Measures for one serve. Open the drink in Bar Bible to scale it to a batch or switch to ounces.

How to make a Contessa

  1. Add everything to a mixing glass with plenty of ice.
  2. Stir until very cold, about 30 seconds.
  3. Strain into a chilled coupe.
  4. Garnish with a grapefruit twist.
Glass
Coupe
Ice
None, served up
Garnish
Grapefruit twist
Open Contessa in My Bar Bible

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Stirred cocktails

Contessa: quick answers

How strong is a Contessa?
About 18% alcohol once the ice has melted in, roughly 16 g of alcohol per drink. That is an estimate: brands and dilution vary.
How many calories are in a Contessa?
About 170 calories per drink, from the alcohol and the ingredients. An estimate: brands and the amount of sugar change it. Compare every drink in the cocktail calorie chart.
What glass is a Contessa served in?
A coupe, with no ice in the glass.
How many ingredients does a Contessa have?
3 in total: gin, Aperol and dry vermouth. Simple enough to make at home.

Cocktail calorie chart: compare all 1,308 drinks

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