Vermouth di Torino, here's why it is experiencing a second youth
Vermouth, an aromatised and fortified wine, is a little liquid magic; a delicate balance of herbs, spices, culture and botanical knowledge. It can be sipped slowly or used as the base for some of the most symbolic and famous cocktails in history
Vermouth is one of the longest-lived and most successful symbols of Italian liqueur-making. One of those inventions that when we cross national borders immediately make us feel brilliant, elegant, even a little clever. Our Vermouths have conquered the world with discretion.
The correct denomination, however, is Torino Vermouth and this is not a purist punctuation but a matter of identity. In fact, it was born in Turin in the second half of the 18th century thanks to Antonio Benedetto Carpano who had the brilliant intuition to mix white wine, sugar, alcohol and aromatic herbs, with absinthe playing the leading role. It is no coincidence thatin Germany the term Wermut denoted absinthe. Adding the name was like telling the world: this is something else. More elegant, more complex, definitely more Italia. In short, a whole other story!
Behind a glass of Vermouth there is not just a recipe but an entire novel made up of trade, memorable advertising posters, historic cafés, good salons and changing social habits. Between the 19th and 20th centuries, Vermouth went through wars, crises, economic booms and changing customs, always managing to carve out a place for itself in the front row, from silent protagonist of the aperitif to fundamental ingredient in the preparation of the world's most famous cocktails, often without taking credit for it. In mixing, in fact, he is a true diplomat, capable of bringing together gin, whisky and singing company.
It was therefore born as an aromatised wine, linked from the outset to a precise social context: the aperitif. The perfect emotional climax, when the day is not yet over and duty is (and the evening has yet to begin). Yet it would be a mistake to think of it as nostalgic or motionless because over time it has changed, fallen and risen again.
Between the late 1970s and the late 1990s it experienced a period of tarnish, overshadowed by louder fashions and less thoughtful drinking. Then, as often happens to things done well, it returned and today it lives a second youth. Small artisanal producers are growing, while the big historic brands are rediscovering the value of their genetic archive. Bartenders are increasingly using it as a key ingredient to give depth and character to cocktails, while chefs and sommeliers are bringing it back to the table, demonstrating how it can dialogue with both traditional and contemporary cuisine.
