Weekly Saturday Tasting

Aromatized Wines

Saturday, March 15th
1:00 - 3:00

Last Fall we did a tasting including a couple of classic Vermouths, and we've been inundated ever since with requests to delve more into those tasty beverages, so we are excited to finally do just taht this weekend. In the previous tasting we stayed just with the basics of classic Dry and Sweet vermouth, but this time we are going to try more of the outlying styles of Aromatized Wines. First off, what is an aromatized wine? Aromatized wine is wine that has been flavored with herbs, spices, fruits, or other natural flavorings. The flavorings are added to the wine to create a distinct taste and aroma. We'll start with one which stays close to the classic Vermouth styles, with Dolin Blanc Vermouth. Vermouth is an aromatized wine that is based on wormwood. The German name for wormwood is 'wermut', which is where we get the category name of vermouth. A blanc vermouth is usually a bit sweeter and more floral than it's dry counterpart; while it is the style of white vermouth we might lean towards more for sipping on its own, it does also work well in a variety of cocktails. Next, we'll move on to an Americano, and taste probably the best known example in the Cocchi Americano Bianco. Americano are aromatized wines that are usually a touch more bitter than Vermouth, and based on Gentian. For our third sample, we'll take on an Amaro. Amaro are often actually bitter liqueurs, (which is why we cannot sell many of the most famous, thanks NC-ABC), but there are examples out there like the Cardamaro we will taste that are based on wine. Cardamaro is based on Moscato wine, which is then aromatized and bittered by the infusion of Cardoon and Bitter Thistle, two plants that are relatives of artichoke. We'll wrap up this investigation with a sampling of the Byrrh Grand Quinquina, from French Catalonia, near Spain. A Quinquina (also known as 'kina') is an aromatized wine where the primary bittering agent is cinchona, which provides quinine. This will be a great opportunity to expand both your palate and your home bar, so we hope you can join us!


Dolin Blanc
Vermouth de Chambéry, France


Cocchi Americano Bianco
Asti, Italy


Cardamaro Amaro al Cardo
Asti, Italy


Byrrh Grand Quinquina
Thuir, Roussillon, France