Vermouth

Vermouth or vermouth (German spelling) is a wine-based liqueur to which various herbs, spices & fruits are added and flavored. The wine is infused with alcohol (= fermentation process is interrupted by adding alcohol), giving them an alcohol content of up to 22% vol. and a sweeter taste. Vermouth originally comes from Italy, but has long since spread to Germany, France and Spain. The name comes from the wormwood herb.

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What do you think of when Vermouth is mentioned? Perhaps the first thing that comes to mind is probably the most famous of all bartender questions:"Stirred or shaken?" Or the two bottles at the very back of the shelf that emerged covered in dust during the last move.

If so, we invite you to join us on an excursion into the realm of contemporary vermouths. However, if you are one of the lucky ones who already feel at home in this world, you are guaranteed to discover one or two surprising delicacies.

Fortunately, vermouth has been able to shake off the antiquated, uncool image of past decades more and more. We doubt, however, that this is due to the tenacity with which a certain elegant action hero clings to his strange favorite drink - three parts gin, one part vodka, half a part vermouth. Fortunately, a new generation of fans has embraced the classic aperitif.

Modern vermouth - the renaissance of an old drink

Let's take a look at how vermouth came about and how it has evolved over the centuries before we dive into the sometimes ingenious fresh interpretations of this wine variant.

First we go to Italy, to 15th century Piedmont (even older sources point to China, the Middle East, Egypt and, of course, classical Greece as the regions of origin of vermouth-like wines. But we will concentrate on the development in modern Europe).

Many winegrowers in Piedmont used the winter months to produce fortified wine (more on this below): Wine was poured into medium-sized barrels, fortified with brandy and spiked with herbs. Slow maturation in the prolonged cold ensured that the ingredients, which were put together according to carefully guarded family recipes, combined to create powerful, stable aromas.

Many of the herbs and spices used back then can still be found today (or rather: again today) on the list of ingredients of lovingly composed vermouth. These include the artemisia plants mugwort and wormwood. Also yarrow, savory, sage, hyssop, marjoram, camomile, elderberry and thyme, as well as more exotic herbs such as cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, coriander, nutmeg, vanilla and even saffron.

By the 17th century, wine liqueur had not only become a popular drink, but was also - depending on its composition - considered a miracle cure for all kinds of illnesses and ailments. The typical slightly "medicinal" taste is a relic from this period. This is not an unintentional by-product, but a characteristic that is now protected at European level.

What is vermouth today?

Whether a drink may be called "vermouth" is governed by a regulation of the European Parliament and the European Council from 2014. Vermouth is a flavoured and fortified wine"whose characteristic flavour is obtained by the use of appropriate substances derived from Artemisia species".

In addition to other characteristics, the regulation also defines the alcohol content that genuine vermouth must have. Between 14.5% and less than 22% by volume are permitted.

How is vermouth produced?

The history of modern vermouth production began in the late 18th century. The Piedmontese distiller Antonio Benedetto Carpano caused a sensation with a fortified red wine. His recipe included around 30 different herbs, as well as sugar and caramel. He thus established the classic sweet style of red Italian vermouth. A little later, white versions with a lower sugar content became popular in France.

The production process of Vermouth

To make good vermouth, you need at least one high-quality wine. This base is flavored with the so-called "tincture". This means that alcohol is added in which the ingredients that are to determine the character of the vermouth are prepared and dissolved. These include spices and herbs - above all wormwood, which provides the typical, elegantly bitter taste.

Modern vermouth is also often flavored with fruit. The Spanish TURMEON Blanco, for example, brings clear citrus notes into play, while the red Vermouth indulges with the more autumnal combination of plum and cinnamon.

What types of vermouth are there? The three most important styles

• Red vermouth: all the sweeter, the more southern its origin
• White vermouth: dry (dry) or sweet, depending on the producer
• Rosé vermouth: newer, fruity/citrusy variant

Where does vermouth come from today?

Spain and Portugal produce vermouth in a similar style to Italy. Among the best of its kind are the fruity red Turmeon from Bodegas Jaime in Zaragoza and the full-bodied Soberbo Vermouth from Pocas in the Douro Valley.

Like the friends of German wine, there are also good vermouths from Germany: the three Helmut vermouths (Helmut the Red, Helmut the White and Helmut the Rosé) come from Hamburg. Stuttgart contributes the premium vermouths from Steinwild, which are also available in rosé, red and white. You can buy all Vermouths online here at Honest & Rare.

How do you drink vermouth?

Modern, high-quality vermouths with excellent ingredients simply taste good. Vermouth is best drunk neat on the rocks, perhaps garnished with a slice of lemon or orange. Good vermouth easily puts any prosecco in the shade.

However, the drinking trend is clearly moving towards less alcohol and fewer calories. A good tonic water is enough to turn a powerful Vermouth into a light, refreshing long drink. And of course there are one or two cocktails that wouldn't work at all without vermouth.

Best-known cocktails with Vermouth, from Americano to Zabao

A lovely Vermouth Rosso can be combined with Campari and soda to make an Americano or with whisky and a few dashes of Angostura to make a Manhattan. In a Negroni, it shares the glass equally with Campari and gin.

A classic martini, on the other hand, consists of just two parts gin and one part dry vermouth(vodka and gin, as every bartender learns pretty much first, do not go in the same drink. As a martini expert, Ian Fleming knew this too).

The Bensonhurst also prefers dry vermouth as a mediator between rye whiskey, sugar-sweet maraschino liqueur and an artichoke bitters.

Finally, the Zabao combines rum, Vermouth Dry, pineapple juice and grenadine syrup on ice. In a glass with a sugar rim, to be precise.

You can buy everything you need for a well-stocked home bar from our online store - whether you prefer to drink your Vermouth neat or with tonic water, or whether you want to explore the exciting world of drinks and cocktails and buy the most important spirits.