September 17, 2025

iichiko and Campari Team Up for the First Time! This Year’s Negroni Week Shines a Spotlight on the Koji Negroni

iichiko has teamed up with Italy’s iconic liqueur brand Campari for Negroni Week, a global event, rolling out a variety of exciting collaborations. From an innovative “Shochu × Negroni” cocktail to a special video and highlights from the August event, here’s the latest update.

Event photography: Koichi Mitsui

A Meeting of Honkaku Shochu and Italian Liqueur: Revolutionizing the Classic Negroni

Japan’s honkaku shochu brand iichiko has joined forces with Italy’s iconic liqueur brand Campari to reimagine the classic Negroni. The result is the groundbreaking Koji Negroni—an entirely new creation that honors the essence of the Negroni while highlighting the depth and character of Japan’s traditional koji.

The Negroni, born in Italy, is a timeless cocktail made with Campari, sweet vermouth, and gin. Beloved by bartenders and cocktail lovers around the globe, it has topped the World’s Best-Selling Classic Cocktails⋆¹ ranking for four consecutive years since 2021.

Adding a Japanese touch to this iconic cocktail is iichiko Saiten, a honkaku barley shochu crafted specifically for mixology. The bold bitterness of Campari intertwines with the delicate aroma and umami of Saiten, creating a glass that beautifully blends Japanese and Western aesthetics.


⋆¹  World’s Best-Selling Classic Cocktails: A global ranking compiled by the U.K. drinks magazine Drinks International (Agile Media Ltd.), based on surveys of the world’s best bars.

Koji Negroni Recipe

Shingo Gokan and Naoto Ogawa Collaborate for the First Time! Special Video Now Streaming

This collaboration has given rise to a variety of creative projects.

A special video is now available featuring world-renowned bartender Shingo Gokan, founder of SG Group and mastermind behind The SG Club, together with Campari Brand Ambassador Naoto Ogawa—marking their very first collaboration.

Gokan, embodying the cool elegance of Japan, and Ogawa, representing the fiery passion of Italy, bring their contrasting energies into harmony as they craft the Koji Negroni. Don’t miss the chance to watch their dynamic interplay unfold.

Shingo Gokan (left)

Founder, SG Group
Born in Kanagawa Prefecture, Gokan began his bartending career in 2001 before moving to the U.S. alone in 2006, where he honed his craft at prestigious bars in New York. In 2012, he won the global Bacardi Legacy Cocktail Competition, and in 2017 he was named International Bartender of the Year at Tales of the Cocktail®. Since opening Speak Low in Shanghai in 2014, he has gone on to launch a series of concept bars and restaurants in Tokyo, Okinawa, New York, and Madrid, Spain. Most recently, in August 2025, he opened Sangai in Tokyo, a bar built on the concept of “Terroir × Terroir.”

Naoto Ogawa (right)

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. In addition to winning numerous cocktail competitions, he was crowned Japan Champion at the Campari Cocktail Competition Asia 2018 and went on to compete in the Asia finals held in Milan. Ogawa has also appeared as a guest bartender at leading bars both in Japan and overseas. His experience includes invitations to Schumann’s Bar in Munich, Germany—home of the legendary bartender Charles Schumann—and Drink Kong in Rome, Italy, a venue ranked among The World’s 50 Best Bars.

When Is Negroni Week 2025?

Launched in 2013 by Campari and Imbibe⋆², 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. Today, more than 13,000 venues take part, with donations totaling over $5 million as of 2024 from over 90 countries—and the movement continues to grow each year.

Negroni Week 2025 will be held from September 22 to 28.

One of the key attractions of this event is the chance to experience not only the classic Negroni but also creative new expressions from bartenders. This year, some participating venues in Japan will also feature the Koji Negroni.

For more details, visit the official Negroni Week website:
www.negroniweek.com


⋆² Imbibe: A U.S. magazine dedicated to bar culture, covering cocktails, recipes, how-tos, wine and spirits, beer, coffee, and more.

A Special Event Ahead of Negroni Week: A One-Night-Only Experience

Naoto Ogawa (left) and Shingo Gokan

On August 26, The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo’s The Bar hosted an exclusive, one-night-only cocktail experience featuring Shingo Gokan and Naoto Ogawa.

Before the event, a press preview was held where Kazunori Nishi, President and CEO of Sanwa Shurui, shared his anticipation for the upcoming Negroni Week saying, “We have long aspired to create experiences that transcend the boundaries between Japanese and Western spirits. With iichiko, a distilled spirit that embodies Japan’s rich koji culture, meeting Campari, the elegant and bitter liqueur born in Italy, I am very excited to see how the Koji Negroni will be received.”

During the event, both Gokan and Ogawa unveiled two original twists on the Koji Negroni created specially for the occasion. Guests lined up outside the venue, eager to savor these inventive cocktails crafted with iichiko Saiten and Campari—a resounding success that overflowed with excitement.

From left: Naoto Ogawa’s Between the Calm and Passion and The Beyond, and Shingo Gokan’s Red Pal and Bincho Negroni

Gokan’s cocktails were full of surprises. His Bincho Negroni was inspired by the familiar idea that shochu goes well with yakitori⋆³. Blending binchotan charcoal-grilled schmaltz (a cooking oil rendered from poultry fat) with the fruity brightness of passion fruit, he created a cocktail bursting with individuality.

His other creation, the Red Pal, expressed Campari as a “new friend” in the glass, a tribute to his role as guest bartender for iichiko. Rooted in the classic Old Pal cocktail—made with whiskey, vermouth, and Campari—this version incorporated tomato, watermelon, and other ingredients. Using Campari and red fruits, he crafted a refreshing drink with a delicate hue, as if iichiko and Campari were joining hands.

Ogawa also expressed the connection between Campari and iichiko through his cocktails. The Beyond symbolized breaking new boundaries with Campari and iichiko, while also reflecting Campari’s own step beyond the framework of the Negroni into new territory. The gentle fragrance rising with sparkling Lambrusco came from peach and shiso vermouth—an idea sparked by the bright, peach-like aroma Ogawa noticed the first time he tasted iichiko Saiten.

Meanwhile, Between the Calm and Passion was named after a film set in Florence, the birthplace of the Negroni. The subtle bitterness of Campari and the striking scent of sapin (a fir tree liqueur) gradually gave way to the koji-derived aroma of iichiko Saiten, creating a drink that unfolded like a story in the glass.

This event left a strong impression of the new possibilities for cocktails that expand beyond the boundaries of Japanese and Western traditions. We can’t help but look forward to the kind of chemistry that the collaboration between iichiko and Campari will spark in the future.


⋆³ In Japan, shochu is commonly enjoyed with meals. Both shochu and yakitori are staples of the izakaya dining experience.

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