Natalie Bovis-Nelsen over at The Liquid Muse just sent me a great email about a cocktail that I want to share with you. A few months ago the staff over at bodog.com hired her to create a custom cocktail for their CEO, Billionaire Calvin Ayre.

I'll let Natalie tell the story in her own words. "Now, creating a drink for a billionaire is like buying Donald Trump a birthday present. How do you impress someone who already has the best of everything? I watched his episode on VH1 "The Fabulous Life of..." and realized this is a man who likes style and substance. So, I began with quality ingredients. Armed with the knowledge that Mr. Ayre is a gin man, I reached for the Bombay Sapphire. The next thing I took into consideration is that he lives in the Caribbean. The drink should be refreshing. A little breezy, a little tart, not too sweet. It should be easy to make (he throws a lot of parties) and it should have some classic flare.Basically, what I came up with was a variation of a Negroni. Created in Italy, and named for an Italian count, the Negroni smacks of Mediterranean glamour, yet is tethered in earthy aromatics. Whip up one up for yourself. Its the perfect summer drink. And, it'll make you feel like a billion bucks."

Natalie's recipe for the Billion-Ayre's Bet cocktail after the jump.

I like an occasional Negroni and had all the ingredients for the Billion-Ayre's Bet cocktail on hand (I used regular Bombay Gin since I was out the Sapphire and prefer the classic to the blue newcomer.) So I shook one of these cocktails up and sat back in my lounge chair looking out my picture window at all the sailboats slowly flitting about out on the bay, and made believe I was a billionaire too.

Billion-Ayre's Bet
2 ounces Bombay Sapphire gin
1 1/2 ounces freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
1 ounce Campari
Squeeze of lime
Champagne
Ice Cubes

Shake gin, juices and Campari with ice cubes. Strain and pour into Rocks glass filled with fresh ice cubes. Top with champagne. Garnish with lime wheel.