Sweet Vermouth
Italian-style aromatized fortified wine — sweet, spicy, red-amber.
Sweet vermouth is a fortified wine aromatized with botanicals (wormwood, gentian, bitter orange, cinnamon, and many others) and sweetened. The Italian style is typically amber-to-red and sweet; the rosso tradition comes from Turin. Cocchi Vermouth di Torino, Carpano Antica Formula, and Punt e Mes are cocktail benchmarks. Vermouth is wine — it oxidizes. Once opened, keep it refrigerated and use within a month or two. A Manhattan, Negroni, or Boulevardier made with tired vermouth is a sad drink.
History
Vermouth is named for wormwood (German: Wermut). Antonio Benedetto Carpano created the first commercial sweet vermouth in Turin in 1786. The style powered the 19th-century Italian cocktail explosion.
Common uses
Manhattan, Negroni, Boulevardier, Vieux Carré.
Cocktails that use Sweet Vermouth
- Negroni — Equal parts gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth — perfectly bitter
- Manhattan — Rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, and bitters — brooding and sophisticated
- Boulevardier — The whiskey cousin of the Negroni — bourbon, Campari, and sweet vermouth
- Mezcal Negroni — The Negroni with mezcal instead of gin — smoky, complex, and addictive
- Vieux Carré — Rye, Cognac, vermouth, Bénédictine, and bitters — New Orleans' most complex stirred drink