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Manhattans, Martinis, Spritzes, Negronis: vermouth-laced classics are in vogue. But which brands are being poured now in the world’s best bars?
For traditional Italian vermouth, Cocchi is the go-to. Founded in Turin, in 1891, the family-owned producer makes a rich, red Vermouth di Torino (£24.25 for 75cl) that’s great in whisky drinks, and aperitivi like the sherry-and-vermouth-based Adonis, currently on the menu at London’s Bar Flor. Cocchi’s crunchy, green Extra Dry (£20.50 for 50cl) is also a mainstay of Martinis from The Dover to The Savoy. The hard-to-find Vergano Vermouth (£41.25 for 75cl) – hand-made in Asti from local wines – is also popular. “It’s so complex and aromatic,” says Aryan Anbari, general manager of Brawn restaurant.
Sherry-based vermouths – and especially those by Bodegas Lustau – are trending in the US. At LenLen in NYC, they use Lustau’s sweeter-style blanco vermouth (€14.40 for 75cl), which is based on manzanilla, in a Martini twist. “It has notes of chamomile and rosemary,” says bar manager Robert Lam-Burns. “Martini drinkers often think, ‘The drier the better,’ but they’re missing out.” Kat Foster of Marlow East on the Upper East side, meanwhile, favours the fino-based González Byass La Copa Extra Seco (£17.50 for 75cl). “[The fino base] gives it a really distinctive salinity that I think lends cocktails a lot of depth.”
Locavore vermouths are on the up. Essex-based Vault’s mineral Coastal Vermouth (£33 for 75cl), made with English Bacchus wine, foraged rock samphire and oyster shells, is a mainstay of cool Martini lists. At Mountain in Soho, though, they mix Coastal with boutique Scotch and the locally made FGTTN Ultrasonic Aperitivo to create a Brit update on an Old Pal. On the US West Coast, there’s Californian brand Veso. “Its vermouths are small-batch, very seasonal and use California wines as a base,” says Danielle Peters, bar director for San Francisco’s Via Aurelia, which uses the Veso Olive Vermouth ($41 for 75cl), infused with castel vetrano olives, kombu and organic herbs, in its Dirty Martini. Veso also makes a seasonal Tomato Vermouth from heritage varieties. Unusual botanicals are a signature of the vermouth new-wave. Leo Robitschek of NoMad in London singles out Baldoria Umami (£28.40 for 75cl), a Chardonnay-based dry vermouth from Italy that’s infused with mushrooms and kombu seaweed.
The other day at Waltz, a Japanese-style counter bar in east London, I encountered my first vermouth from Japan – a product so niche that Waltz owner Gento Torigata has to bring it from Tokyo in his luggage. Created by Michito Kaneko, owner of Lamp Bar in Nara, Issui Himuro (¥6,600, about £32) is based on sake rather than wine, so rather bends the rules – but its bittersweet botanical mix, which includes Japanese wormwood, yuzu and cypress, is very vermouth-like. I had it in a Gibson with Japanese Nikka Gin – heavy on the vermouth.
