Rachel’s homemade vermouth was the surprising highlight of the evening.
This was the consensus at the November meeting of Cookbook Club, a regular event that Diana organizes at a friend’s spacious apartment in New York City. Of the dozen and half dishes that we attendees prepared from the selected cookbook, Catalan Food, Rachel’s first attempt at making vermouth stood out among some very impressive and ambitious dishes, including a fisherman’s paella,rabbit stew, freshly fried churros, and rice pudding made with Spanish Bomba rice, and even--I hate to admit--my clams cooked in white wine.
So, what was so special about the vermouth that Rachel made in both a dry and sweet version? Perhaps it had to do with its being deliciously potent and got us all in a good mood quickly. We drank it simply with ice and a green castelvetrano olive. Or maybe because it was distinctly Spanish and it transported us from busy Manhattan to the slow delights of Catalonia in Spain, where the eat-drink-chat tradition of l’hora de vermut--vermouth hour--is being resurrected. Whatever it was, her Vermut de la Casa was made well and it made us reconsider vermouth.
Who knew that vermouth, which is an aromatized (flavors are added) and fortified (spirits added) wine could be made at home? I certainly didn’t! Rachel’s two flip-top bottles of vermouth, transported by subway, showed us all, including me, the spirits expert, that they could. Another lesson: they showed us that vermouth can play a starring role all by itself and not just a supporting one in spirit-forward cocktails, such as the Martini, Manhattan, Negroni, Vieux Carre, and so many others that benefit from the complex botanicals and sweetness that vermouth brings to a mixed drink. In fact, these cocktails wouldn’t be the drinks they are without vermouth.
Well, I was good and aware of that last lesson, of vermouth capable of taking on a starring role, as is Paul. Case in point: one of our favorite cocktails when we are going with something low ABV is an Old Hickory, typically equal parts of dry and sweet vermouth boosted with both orange and Peychaud’s bitters. Another benefit of this drink besides its low ABV is that it’s so damn easy to make. No shaker required. Just build it in a glass. Just as you would if you were to pour yourself a simple class of vermouth.
Let’s sing more praises to vermouth: Its low ABV (as compared to a boozy cocktail) offers a softer touch of alcohol while opening up the taste buds and stomach. It helps get the dinner party started without sending it right off the deep end, just as we experienced at Cookbook Club. And drinking vermouth is so wonderfully Euro. You can’t help but feel worldly and cosmopolitan. For me a solid glass of vermouth on its own evokes my trips to Spain, especially my first trip to Barcelona where my friend Anne stocked up on a half dozen expressions for us to try together with nibbling on cheese and olives and conservas (high quality tinned fish) on her balcony in the city of Gaudi.
What I am trying to say is: Go out and try some vermouth. It can be as simple as adding some to ice and an orange slice and/or green olive or mixing them into a classic cocktail. Just be sure to store the opened bottle of vermouth in the fridge as it can go off if it sits out. Remember: it’s a wine. Or try making your own, as Rachel did!