Cocchi storico vermouth di torino

Vermouth is a wonderful invention!  The modern versions of the beverage were first produced in the mid-to late 18th century in Turin/Torino, Italy. While vermouth was traditionally used for medicinal purposes, it was later served as an apéritif, with fashionable cafés in Turin serving it to guests around the clock.

In the late 19th century, it became popular with bartenders as a key ingredient for cocktails, such as the martini, the Manhattan, the Rob Roy, and the Negroni. In addition to being consumed as an apéritif or cocktail ingredient, vermouth is sometimes used as an alternative to white wine in cooking. Historically, there have been two main types of vermouth: sweet and dry. Responding to demand and competition, vermouth manufacturers have created additional styles, including extra-dry white, sweet white (blanc or bianco), red (rosso), amber (ambre), and rosé.

Until recently, vermouth was the best supporting actor of the cocktail world. Many of your favorite drinks wouldn’t be the same without it, but it rarely received top billing. But the trend toward low-alcohol cocktails, coupled with a flurry of quality vermouth, have put it in the spotlight.

At its core, vermouth is a bittersweet, low-ABV, aromatized, and fortified wine, flavored with proprietary blends of herbs, spices, and bitter botanicals. It’s bolstered with a distilled base spirit and typically sweetened with sugar. But each expression, producer, and bottling has its own traditions, history, and production methods for a consumer to consider before even twisting off the bottle cap.

Also known as red, rosso, rouge or Italian, sweet vermouth ranges in color from garnet to dark caramel. It has an average of 150 grams of sugar per liter and is typically rich and spicy, with lightly herbaceous notes. Vermouth di Torino is an expression whose ingredients and production are protected by an appellation of origin. 

Since its introduction to the market just over a decade ago, Cocchi’s distinctive expression – based on a historic recipe from 1891 that has notes of bitter orange, cocoa, and aromatic spices – remains the category go-to among great bartenders.  

Cocchi’s original Vermouth di Torino recipe, made using Moscato as its wine base, the flavor profile is rich and lush, with notes of dried fig, cocoa, and baking spice. It’s a favorite for Negronis and other cocktails, though it’s also delicious on its own.  Unlike the Vermouth di Torino that we used to carry, it avoids a heavy sheen of vanilla or caramel that clashes with other cocktail ingredients.