July 11, 2018

Homemade Spanish Vermouth

Making your own homemade Spanish vermouth is the best thing you can do with cheap white wine.

It’s modern-day alchemy, where you transform an ordinary (or – if we’re talking cheap pinot gris – terrible) liquid into something delicious. Better yet, by making it at home, you can flavour your vermouth with whatever fruits, herbs, and spices you love best! Even more better yet, it’s easy (and cheap) to make, but looks and tastes time-consuming when done well (which makes it a great gift for people you don’t want to spend real money on).

Vermouth can be mixed with other spirits and liqueurs to make some classic cocktails, such as a Negroni, or enjoyed by itself—ideally over ice with a squeeze of lemon and an olive.

Contents

How to make DIY Spanish Vermouth

Ingredients

Yields roughly one and a half bottles.

3 cups of dry, un-oaked white wine
1 cup of dry sherry
1 orange (peel only)
1 grapefruit (peel only)
1 lemon (peel only)
1 cinnamon stick
7 cardamom pods
5 cloves
1 sprig of tarragon
1 sprig of rosemary
1 sprig of thyme
1 teaspoon of anise
1 cup of brandy
1 scant cup of sugar

Directions

Pour half of the wine into a large stockpot and add the fruit peels, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, tarragon, rosemary, thyme, and anise. Place over a medium-high heat and bring to the boil (roughly five minutes). Remove from heat.
Add the remaining wine and all of the sherry to the stockpot, before placing a lid on top. Put the mixture in the fridge to steep. Depending on how prominent you want the flavour of the botanicals to be in the final mix, the steeping time can vary. I go for 3 to 4 hours for a more subtle aromatic profile, or else leave it in the fridge overnight if I want the flavour of the different herbs, fruits, and spices to be more up-front. After steeping, remove the now infused wine mix, and strain out the solids.
Next, it’s time to make a caramel! In a separate, smaller pot, pour in the scant cup of sugar and place over a medium heat. Stir often to prevent the sugar from sticking to the pot. As the sugar begins to melt, it will gradually become a golden brown colour. Once all of the sugar has melted, remove from heat and allow it to cool. Add the brandy to the caramel, and return to a low heat. Gently stir the mix to incorporate the brandy in the case of the caramel seizing or hardening.
Combine the infused wine and the brandy caramel, and pour into air-tight bottles. Vermouth can last in the fridge for around 30 days after being made (but why wait, have a vermouth party and invite me).

Notes:

The botanicals I’ve used for the recipe below will make you a typical Andalucian-style vermouth. However, feel free to experiment with your own favourite flavours and sub them in accordingly!

Traditionally, vermouths require a dash of wormwood as well, but who has the time to find wormwood/deal with the hallucinations. I don’t use it when I make my own, but if you are able to locate some, adding it will make for a more traditional flavour.

Using a scant cup of sugar will yield a sweeter vermouth, so scale the amount down if you prefer a drier, bitter style.

When it comes to the wine used for the base mix, cheaper is better! The flavour of the wine will be drowned out by the botanicals and the caramel, not to mention the cooking process. Just make sure to use a dry style, as the sweetness of the finished vermouth will come from the caramel.