Vermouth: The Revival of the Spirit that Created America's Cocktail Culture

by Adam Ford

Previously fallen from grace, vermouth is once again the next big thing in spirits.

Over the years, vermouth has fallen from grace, but the truth is, without vermouth, your martini is merely an iced vodka or gin. Now, once again, vermouth is being touted as the hottest trend in spirits. It is showing up in copious amounts on the best cocktail menus in the best cocktail lounges around the country. Vermouth has a rich history, deeply intertwined with that of America, and this book offers the first-ever detailed look into the background of this aromatized, fortified wine, as well as vermouth's rise, fall, and comeback in America.

100 color photographs.

Genres: Cocktails

224 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2015

About the author

Adam Ford, a lawyer by profession, is the founder of Atsby New York Vermouth.

Reviews

[Maria Cloos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great history and interpretation of vermouth. I was ready to give it 5 stars (reduced to 4 for the poor stylistic choice of really dark backgrounds for several pages with printing on them that were distracting and annoying to read). But then, as the book progressed, there were really odd editorial mistakes that one rarely sees in a printed book. Worse is the idiotic recipe writing. He doesn’t list ingredients in the order used, fails to include all ingredients in the ingredient list and sometimes forgets to include a quantity. Why is this so difficult? It seems to be particularly prevalent when the ingredient missing from the ingredient list is champagne (not just here - PDT’s book has this strange flaw as well).

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of super cool history of Vermouth. Following a trip to Barcelona where we learned how delicious and refreshing sipping sweet vermouth can be, I truly enjoyed learning more and from a different and current perspective.

[krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Effective as a reference or as a straight read, though there are quite a few repetitions of ancillary facts. I get it, the Spanish "do vermouth"! A little showboating here and there, but the author mentions from the outset that they own a vermouth company. The recipes are thoughtfully organized, a feat that few modern cocktail books have managed to accomplish. Photos are gorgeous, but it kills me that a recipe will call for serving the cocktail stirred/strained and served with an orange peel, but then the glamour shot has it served on the rocks with an olive.

That being said, the book is well-researched and informative and has me super pumped to try as many new-wave American craft vermouths I can get my hands on.

[William Frost · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of the book is good information on what vermouth is, where it comes from, and how to make it. Those parts are good. Occasionally, though, the author likes to talk about his own life in a way that suggests a bit of bragging, which was off-putting. Also, I don't even know where to get all the ingredients for the recipes in the back. I ended up skimming that part. Overall, though, a fun read.