Unexpected ways to drink vermouth

After an evening of slinging martinis for your dinner party guests you’ve probably found yourself  with a semi-empty bottle of open vermouth leftover and wondered what on earth to do with it. We know it’s tempting to wait until the next martini-worthy event, but trust us when we say there are way more interesting ways to use it.

Vermouth falls into the fortified wine category, which means it’s a wine that’s been enhanced with brandy and infused with herbs and botanicals. It was originally created as a medicinal tonic and gets its name from the German word for wormwood, one of the key ingredients in the herby infusion.

Fast forward a few centuries and there are now two main types of vermouth: dry or sweet, each with different uses. Dry white vermouth is the bottle you’ll have leftover after the aforementioned martinis. It was originally created in France with the colour coming from a white wine base. On the other end of the spectrum is the Italian red vermouth, which is sweet and often vanilla scented. 

Vermouth is somewhat of an underappreciated side kick in the drinks world. It might be best known for standing alongside well-known spirits in cocktails, but this often overlooked aperitif is more than worthy of its own spotlight and is making a comeback. Below, we’ve shared our favourite unexpected ways to enjoy vermouth. Whether you like it dry or sweet, there’s a vermouth option here for everyone.