Vermouth - Production, Ingredients, and Flavors

Production, Ingredients, and Flavors

Several wine grapes, including Clairette blanche, Piquepoul, Catarratto and Trebbiano, are generally used as the base ingredients for vermouths. From these grapes, a low-alcohol white wine is produced by vermouth manufacturers. The wine may be aged for a short while before the addition of other ingredients. For sweet vermouths, sugar syrup is added before the wine is fortified with extra alcohol. The added alcohol is usually a neutral grape spirit, but may also come from vegetable sources such as sugar beets. The wine is then placed in large barrels or tanks to which the dry ingredients have already been added. The mixture is stirred off-and-on until the dry ingredients have been absorbed and the drink is ready for bottling. Caramel color is added to make red vermouths. Most vermouths are bottled at between 16% and 18% ABV, as compared with the 9–14% ABV of most unfortified wines.

Dry ingredients often used in vermouths include cloves, cinnamon, quinine, citrus peel, cardamom, marjoram, chamomile, coriander, juniper, hyssop, and ginger. The prohibition of wormwood as a drink ingredient in the early 20th century in some countries sharply reduced its use in vermouth, but small amounts of the herb are still sometimes included. Vermouth brand recipes vary, with most manufacturers marketing their own unique flavor and version of the beverage. Vermouth manufacturers keep their recipes for the drink secret.

Sweet vermouths usually contain 10–15% sugar. The sugar content in dry vermouths generally does not exceed 4%. Dry vermouths usually are lighter in body than sweet vermouths.

In addition to pale and red vermouths, there exists golden and rosé versions, but these are not as internationally popular. The region of Chambéry in France has received an appellation d'origine contrôlée for its vermouths, which include a strawberry-flavored version called Chambéryzette. Lillet and Dubonnet are fortified wines similar to vermouth, but are usually considered separate products.

The term "Italian vermouth" is often used to refer to red-colored, mildly bitter, and slightly sweet vermouths. These types of vermouths have also been called "rosso." The label "French vermouth" generally refers to pale, dry vermouths that are bitterer than sweet vermouths. The extra bitterness is often obtained by using nutmeg and/or bitter orange peel in the drink recipe. Bianco is a name given to a type of pale, sweeter vermouth.

According to Stuart Walton and Brian Glover, vermouth "is as far removed from the natural produce of the vine as it is possible for a fortified wine to get."