Negroni Week is a global charity event organized by Campari, Italy’s iconic liqueur brand. Now being held for the 14th time, the event will once again feature a collaboration with iichiko Saiten, following the success of their partnership last year. We bring you the latest on the newly created Negroni twist and other highlights, along with a look at the pop-up event held just ahead of Negroni Week.
Photo: Shingo Kobari
Campari and iichiko Team Up Again for Negroni Week, the Global Event Connecting Bars Around the World
The Negroni is a timeless cocktail made with Campari, sweet vermouth, and gin. Launched in 2013, Negroni Week is a global charity initiative where bars and restaurants around the world serve Negronis and donate a portion of the proceeds to nonprofit organizations. In 2026, Negroni Week will run from September 21 to 27. During the week, participating venues offer not only the classic Negroni but also creative twists crafted by bartenders.
Negroni Week Official Website
https://www.negroniweek.com/Last year’s Negroni Week saw the first collaboration between iichiko and Campari. The partnership produced the innovative Koji Negroni, which added a Japanese touch to the Italian-born cocktail by using iichiko Saiten honkaku barley shochu, and proved highly popular.
iichiko and Campari are teaming up again for this year’s Negroni Week. Following the Koji Negroni, they have created a new signature cocktail: Rosso Blu.
Rosso Blu: A New Japanese Take on the Negroni
The Negroni is said to have been created in 1919 at Café Casoni in Florence, Italy. Count Camillo Negroni was fond of the Americano, a cocktail made with Campari, vermouth, and soda, and one day asked for the soda to be replaced with gin. The result was the Negroni.
Rosso Blu takes its inspiration from the Americano, which can be considered the precursor to the Negroni. In the cocktail’s name, Rosso (“red”) represents Campari, while Blu (“blue”) represents the brand color of iichiko Saiten. The cocktail name was also inspired by the titles of the two companion novels Rosso and Blu in the Japanese book Between Calmness and Passion, which is set in Japan and Florence.
Naoto Ogawa, Campari Brand Ambassador, describes Rosso Blu as “a distinctly Japanese return to basics.”
“We added tonic water to the rich flavors created by combining iichiko Saiten and Campari. It leaves a crisp bitterness on the finish. It’s a simple cocktail that brings together Japan’s chuhai culture and the Japanese bartending philosophy of stripping away anything unnecessary.
“The Negroni has continued to evolve through the creation of new variations that replace gin as the base spirit. I’d like to take that evolution a step further and develop a uniquely Japanese Negroni culture.” (Naoto Ogawa)
Koji Negroni Recipe
iichiko Saiten: 30ml
Campari: 25ml
Cinzano Vermouth Rosso: 25ml
Rosso Blu Recipe
iichiko Saiten: 30ml
Campari: 30ml
Tonic water: Top up
Garnish: Shiso flower spike
Special Video Featuring Hiroyasu Kayama and Naoto Ogawa
As another part of the collaboration between iichiko and Campari, a special video has been released featuring Hiroyasu Kayama, owner-bartender of Bar BenFiddich in Shinjuku, Tokyo, and Campari Brand Ambassador Naoto Ogawa.
Through two cocktails with distinctly different characters—the Koji Negroni and Rosso Blu—the video showcases the depth of the Negroni and new ways to enjoy it.
Special Video Featuring Hiroyasu Kayama and Naoto Ogawa
Hiroyasu Kayama
Owner-Bartender, Bar BenFiddichBorn in Saitama Prefecture in 1983. After working at a hotel bar in Tokyo and later managing a bar in Nishi-Azabu, Tokyo, Kayama struck out on his own in July 2013, opening Bar BenFiddich, which specializes in botanical spirits such as absinthe and gin. In 2015, he won The Botanist Foraged Cocktail Competition. Bar BenFiddich was ranked 18th in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025.
Naoto Ogawa
Brand Ambassador, Campari Group (Campari Japan)Born in Hyogo Prefecture, Ogawa studied abroad in New Zealand and Australia before training as a bartender at Kobe’s renowned bar Elixir de Longue Vie. He was crowned Japan Champion at the Campari Cocktail Competition Asia 2018 and went on to compete in the Asia finals held in Milan. He has also made guest bartending appearances at bars in Japan and overseas, including Schumann’s Bar in Munich, Germany, home of the legendary bartender Charles Schumann.
Three-Day Advance Pop-Up Event Held at Bar Tram in Ebisu
Ahead of Negroni Week, which begins on September 21, a special three-day pop-up event was held at Bar Tram in Ebisu, Tokyo, from September 7 to 9. Two guest bartenders took their place behind the bar each day, serving the Koji Negroni and Rosso Blu as well as their own original cocktails featuring iichiko Saiten and Campari.
Dates: September 7–9, 2026
Venue: Bar Tram (2F Swing Building, 1-7-13 Ebisu-Nishi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo)
Guest Bartenders:
September 7: Yuya Takahashi, The Kahala Hotel & Resort Yokohama (Kanagawa) × Hiroyuki Yamada, Bee’s Knees (Kyoto)
September 8: Shinya Koba, Yakoboku (Kumamoto) × Naoto Ogawa, Campari Brand Ambassador
September 9: Makiko Otsu, Bar Sebek (Fukuoka) × Ruka Hattori, The SG Club (Tokyo)
Behind the bar on September 7, the first day of the pop-up, were Yuya Takahashi (The Kahala Hotel & Resort Yokohama, Kanagawa), winner of the iichiko IRODORI Cocktail Competition held in 2025, and Hiroyuki Yamada (Bee’s Knees, Kyoto), who won the Japan round of Campari Red Hands APAC 2025 and went on to place third in the Asia competition. The event brought together the respective winners of iichiko’s and Campari’s cocktail competitions in Japan.
Takahashi says his Evening Glory Fizz was inspired by “evening in Italy and Japan.”
“The Americano, a cocktail made with Campari, vermouth, and soda, evokes the feeling of an Italian evening. Building on that, I added iichiko Saiten and ginger beer and garnished it with a mirin-glazed rice cracker. The combination of koji, ginger, and soy sauce creates an aroma reminiscent of Japanese simmered dishes. It’s the smell of dinner cooking that drifts from people’s kitchens as you walk through town—the feeling of an evening in Japan. I created the cocktail with the image of gathering around the same table to enjoy both an Italian and a Japanese dinner.” (Yuya Takahashi)
Yamada’s Fortuna Rossa is an adaptation of the cocktail he entered in Campari Red Hands APAC 2025. It combines Campari and sweet vermouth with strawberry-infused iichiko Saiten and is topped with a tofu foam that adds a touch of Kyoto, home to his bar, Bee’s Knees. The result is an elegant cocktail that lets you enjoy the interplay between the Negroni and Japanese ingredients.
“It’s a Negroni twist inspired by strawberry daifuku, a Japanese sweet of strawberry and red bean paste wrapped in mochi. For Campari Red Hands, I combined Campari with strawberry-infused mezcal. Replacing the smokiness of the mezcal with the umami of iichiko Saiten has rounded out the flavors and made the cocktail easier to drink. As you drink it, you first get the bitterness, then the freshness of the strawberry, and finally the rich umami of iichiko Saiten. It also pairs incredibly well with the tofu foam. iichiko Saiten is such a good base spirit that using it almost feels like cheating (laughs), and it allowed me to make the cocktail simpler.” (Hiroyuki Yamada)
The counter at Bar Tram was packed throughout the event, with some guests even dressed in Campari’s signature red. The two champion bartenders, both sporting engaging smiles, captivated the crowd with their skills behind the bar.
The Negroni is a cocktail loved around the world. Its collaboration with iichiko Saiten, a honkaku barley shochu embodying the finest traditions of koji-based spirit making, is expected to introduce the Negroni to an even broader audience in Japan.
