Dry Vermouth Explained: How to Drink Dry Vermouth

Vermouth is an aromatized and fortified wine flavored with various herbs, spices, and other botanicals. It is a key ingredient in various cocktails. Most vermouth styles use the same botanicals, including fennel, cloves, cinnamon, star anise, lemon peel, cardamom, marjoram, chamomile, coriander, juniper, hyssop, ginger, and sage.

Vermouth has its origins in Turin, Italy, around the mid- to late-eighteenth century as a medicinal product. Italian vermouth was soon served in cafes as an apéritif on its own, and it remains popular as a standalone drink in Italy as well as France, Argentina, Chile, and Spain.

Consider the key differences between dry and sweet vermouth.

• Dry vermouth: Dry vermouth has floral aromas and is characterized as dry in the alcoholic drink sense, meaning it has little to no sugar (only about four to five percent sugar, or fifty grams per liter), is higher in alcohol, and is lower in water content. This makes it less sweet and often more potent. Dry vermouth is clear or very light yellow in color. As an ingredient in mixed drinks, it is most commonly associated with dry Martinis.
• Sweet vermouth: Sweet, darker, red vermouth originates in France. Its sweeter flavor (at about 150 grams of sugar per liter) and red or caramel color make it function slightly more like a syrup. Sweet vermouth is mixed with darker spirits to make cocktails like the Manhattan or Negroni.
• Other styles: Other vermouth styles include extra dry vermouth, white vermouth bianco (similar in color to dry, only sweeter), and the bittersweet rosso vermouth.

Consider the most popular ways to consume dry vermouth.

1. 1. Neat: In the US and UK, dry vermouth is thought of exclusively as an extra ingredient to mix into cocktails, but in the majority of countries that are known for producing vermouth, it’s common to drink it neat.
2. 2. On the rocks: Much like white wines, dry vermouth is great at cooler temperatures. A glass served with ice cubes provides a refreshing way to unwind during warmer months.
3. 3. Spritzers: A splash of soda or citrus is a simple way to add dimension to your dry vermouth. Grapefruit juice or other fruity citrus flavors pair particularly well with vermouth’s floral notes.
4. 4. With sweet vermouth: Adding sweet vermouth to dry can be an exciting blend, and some styles of mixed vermouth have their own names at certain historic bars and clubs. Cocktail variations that use equal parts sweet and dry vermouth are known nominally as “perfect”—as in a perfect Manhattan or perfect Negroni.
   
5. 5. In a cocktail: Martinis are the most well-known of the dry vermouth classic cocktails. Julia Child notably liked to make reverse martinis—five parts dry vermouth to one part gin on the rocks. Other popular drinks featuring dry vermouth include the Gibson, Whisky Special, Allies Cocktail, and Old Pal.

Dry vermouth is a wine and not a spirit, so think of it as if you are opening and re-corking a bottle of wine with a similar alcohol content like Pétrus or port. For drinking and use in cocktails, dry vermouth will keep for about a month when stored at room temperature. It can retain its expected flavor in the fridge for about two months. For use in cooking, vermouth can be used for a few months before it begins to get too flat and bitter for cooking purposes.

Learn more about mixology from award-winning bartenders Lynnette Marrero and Ryan Chetiyawardana. Refine your palate, explore the world of spirits, and shake up the perfect cocktail for your next gathering with the MasterClass Annual Membership.