It’s September - Warm days are slowly getting behind us and I sit here imagining a time when that wouldn’t be a worry. And if I’m enthralling myself with imaginary temperatures, why not throw in some imaginary colour too? No better way to celebrate summer/fall transition denial and negroni week 2022, than to shake up a deep magenta-hued one.

ingredients

GROUP A: MAGENTA JUICE

• 1 small beetroot

• 1 red apple

• 1/4” knob of ginger

• 8 - 10 baby carrots

GROUP B: NEGRONI

• 1 oz gin

• 1 oz aperol

• 1 oz dry vermouth

• 1 oz magenta juice

• 1/4 oz fresh lime juice

• Cubed ice

• Lime peel, to garnish with.

METHOD

• Add all Group A ingredients to a juicer to obtain fresh pressed juice. Refrigerate in an air-tight bottle for up to 2 weeks. Alternatively, if you don’t have a juicer and are using a blender instead, add 1 cup water at a time while blending, and keep adding more to thin out the consistency of the resulting mixture till it reaches a juice-like state. Strain through a fine mesh sieve and discard the solids.

• Make the negroni: Add all Group B ingredients to a cocktail shaker and shake for 5 - 6 seconds. Strain over ice into a double rocks glass. Garnish the rim with a lime peel twist.