rare, full bodied sweet vermouth
Vermouth was first produced in 1786 in Torino, its name coming from the principal ingredient wormwood, or wermut as the Germans would say. Mauro’s base wine consists of Cortese and Moscato from local producers, the former offering brightness and acid, the latter aromatics. These wines are blended with a mixture of raw alcohol, wormwood, citrus skin and herbs like thyme, marjoram, basil and oregano. In the hands of Mauro, we get an unusually detailed, delicate white Vermouth, the best we have tried.
The base wines for this lovely white vermouth are unsulfured, certified-organic Moscato (from Vittorio Bera e Figli) and unsulfured, certified-biodynamic Cortese (from Cascina degli Ulivi). Some of the key botanicals are wormwood, chinotto (bitter oranges picked green), gentian flowers, thyme, oregano, marjoram, basil and lemon zest. Most vermouth bianchi are made with chemical components and highly industrial processes: Vergano's are the real thing, highly expressive and pretty; his are made super-small production in Torino, so they're hard to find, too. This vermouth makes the best white negroni of all time.
