12/05/2026
A Negroni is gin, vermouth, Campari. But it’s never really that simple.
Swap the gin for mezcal and the whole character changes. Split the Campari with Aperol and it softens. Drop the gin entirely - you’ve got an Americano. Three ingredients, dozens of variations, and each one is a deliberate choice.
Add a few extra ingredients to try to be everything to everyone, and all of a sudden it’s unrecognisable.
The difference isn’t how much you change. It’s whether you know why you’re changing it.
Music in hospitality works the same way. A genre because it fits the space, not because it fills a gap. A tempo shift because the evening demands it, not just because it needs variety. A track because it belongs next to the one before it, not because someone wanted more options.
A great bartender doesn’t give you more or less. They give you exactly what the drink needs.
The same is true for a great playlist.