The Mixellany Guide to Vermouth & Other Apéritifs

by Jared McDaniel Brown, Anistatia Renard Miller

The Mixellany Guide to Vermouth & Other Aperitifs explores the remarkable history of aromatized wines and spirits as well as the secrets of their production. When vermouth landed on American shores, it gave birth to an entire family of drinks from the Martini and the Manhattan to the Adonis and the Metropole. In Britain, the dry and sweet versions led to the Blood & Sand and the Matador.But why did Winston Churchill allegedly bow toward France instead of using vermouth in a drink? Why have various eyedroppers and atomizers been marketed to administer minute amounts of this aromatized wine into American drinks on both sides of the Atlantic? In caf?'s throughout Italy and France you can tell the time by the orders for tumblers and goblets of vermouth on the rocks. Argentines and Chileans love vermouth so much their cocktail hour is sometimes called l'hora del vermut the vermouth hour]. In some regions of Spain bodegas have barrels of vermouth to dole out for after-work aperitivos.Drinks historians and life-long vermouth lovers, Jared Brown and Anistatia Miller delve into the reasons why vermouths and other ap ritifs have been so misunderstood and under-valued since the end of Prohibition in the United States and suggest why it is time to have a change of heart.

240 pages, Paperback

First published July 14, 2011

Reviews

[Ethan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one's definitely for the aficionado. Solid and thorough, though not as readable as Jason Wilson's Boozehound, which covers similar territory. The Mixellany Guide to Vermouth has a bit of a raw listing feeling - chapters on apertif producers and their products, though not including even their web addresses - combined with a self-published vibe that again keeps it for the more serious reader. The authors don't quite overcome the problem of describing flavors or differences - one definitely tires of reading the terms "bitter", "anise-like", and "good to stimulate digestion" - but on the whole do a good job describing what vermouth is, how it came to be, and why it (and its relatives) deserve deeper consideration in a world where people seem to be clamoring for more flavor in their food and drink. I'm glad to have it on the shelf.

[Melanie Epp · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative, but very poorly written and arranged. Full of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors that were distracting to the reader.