Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that Olive or Twist is a participating business and to include the other local charities benefiting from Negroni Week. 225 regrets these omissions.
Baton Rouge recently acquired its own chapter of the Bartenders’ Guild, a national organization that supports bartenders by fostering collaboration and communication between them.
The Baton Rouge chapter has been in the works for a while, but just recently became a truly active organization and is stepping into the local scene with Negroni Week, its first community event. From June 6-12, participating bars and restaurants will donate a portion of proceeds from each Negroni or Negroni variation sold to a local charity of their choosing. A Negroni is a cocktail made of one part gin, one part vermouth and one part Campari, usually garnished with orange peel.
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George Krause, president of the chapter and executive chef at Doe’s Eat Place, says he wants Negroni Week to become the group’s largest annual fundraiser, rising to the ranks of Baton Rouge events such as Restaurant Week, Third Street Grub Crawl and Slow Food Baton Rouge’s Dinner in the Field.
“Bars and restaurants are where communities come together,” he says. “We are working on making this event so large that every bar in Baton Rouge participates.”
This year, participating establishments include Doe’s Eat Place, The Bulldog, The Cove, Lock & Key Whiskey Bar, Bin 77 Sidebar, Churchill’s and Olive or Twist.
Negroni Week is a national event organized by Imbibe magazine and the Campari brand. It launched in 2013 as a celebration of the cocktail and an effort to raise money for charitable causes around the world. From 2013 to 2015, Negroni Week grew from more than 100 participating venues to more than 3,500 around the world and raised more than $320,000 for various charities.
Several Baton Rouge bars chose the Crisis Intervention Center because of a recent spike in suicides in service industry workers, Krause says. In the past nine months, Krause says 22 reported suicides in Baton Rouge alone have been servers, hosts or hostesses, cooks and other service industry employees. He hopes this year’s Negroni Week will bring attention to the epidemic and raise a decent donation for the Intervention Center.
Other charities chosen include Companion Animal Alliance, the Humane Society and the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank.
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Krause says the Baton Rouge Bartenders’ Guild has plans to become more involved in the local community as the chapter finds its footing. He wants the guild to partner with more local charities and begin hosting community-wide events.
“We are here, we do exist, we want to really get involved,” he says. “We just have to figure out when, where and how. We’re fine-tuning ourselves right now.”
Bars and restaurants that haven’t yet signed up for Negroni Week but wish to participate can find out how here. Registration is open until Sunday, June 5.
To become a member of the guild, go to the organization’s national website or contact the Baton Rouge chapter through Facebook.