The case for New Zealand vermouth: why the country's most overlooked drink deserves a closer look
Aperitivo Aotearoa is the first event of its kind here — a showcase of New Zealand vermouth, amari and aperitifs from seven of the country's most interesting producers.
From the Editor
There’s a particular pleasure in the slow drink. The one you sip before dinner, or after, or sometimes instead of dinner but with copious amounts of charcuterie. The bottle on the back bar with a label you don’t quite recognise. The vermouth poured neat over a single big cube of ice, with a twist of orange. This is the world of aperitivo and amaro — bitter, herbal, wine-based, spirit-based, sweet, dry, weird, traditional — and it is one of the most genuinely people & place corners of the drinks landscape.
It’s also a world New Zealand has been building, quietly and with real craft, for longer than many people realise. I’ve tasted my way through a lot of what’s being made here over the last few years: winemakers, distillers and brewers approaching this category from their own angles, using native botanicals, local fruit and giving small-batch attention that produces drinks you won’t get anywhere else in the world. I champion the people making these bottles, and I champion the consumers who fall for them — because the more curious we are at the back bar and the bottle shop, the more producers can keep making interesting things.
Which is why I couldn’t wait to invite Jules van Costello to share his own passion and expertise with you. Jules has spent seven years making his own vermouth, and he’s now pulled together the first event in the country dedicated to celebrating the breadth of what’s being produced here. If you’ve ever wondered what a New Zealand vermouth might actually taste like — or if you didn’t know they existed — read on.
— Tash
Aotearoa Vermouth is something to be proud of…
Vermouth, a key ingredient in some of the world’s most iconic cocktails, has been overlooked for too long, with even highly experienced bartenders using the same handful of imported ingredients almost interchangeably. Aperitivo Aotearoa is here to change that… And don’t even get me started on bars storing vermouth unrefrigerated.
As well as a cocktail ingredient, vermouth is a phenomenal drink on its own or simply mixed with soda or tonic. As a low ABV option it thrives and aligns well with industry trends. For example, a 50ml pour of 16% vermouth is about 0.6 standard drinks, considerably less than half the alcohol that is in a 12% 150ml glass of wine or a 5% can of beer.
For context, I have been making vermouth for about seven years and since covid we have seen interest in the product skyrocket. While I’ve done my best as a self-proclaimed vermouth evangelical, most of the time I’m trying to convince people (consumers and professionals) to drink my vermouth, where Aperitivo Aotearoa is more about looking at New Zealand produced examples of these drinks more broadly and showcasing both the quality and diversity of these amazing beverages. As a world class producer of both wine and spirits, there is no reason New Zealand shouldn’t be proud consumers of beverages that combine these components.
That’s why I drove Aperitivo Aotearoa as a project. It was originally conceived around 2023 and it has taken a lot of collaboration and patience to get there, with the first event happening in a couple of weeks in Auckland on the 27th of May at Panacea Bar. Don’t worry, we’re already planning a Wellington event!
Showcasing the quality and diversity of New Zealand Vermouth, Aperitifs (largely wine-based ones) and other similar drinks (we’ll also have Vino Amaro, Sherry-styles and more), it features seven producers of these fantastic beverages (my guess is there are about a dozen producers making these regularly). Most of the producers are either wineries that dabble in vermouth, however there are also distilleries, breweries and even a dedicated vermouth producer taking part.
Like vermouth generally there is also a huge range of styles from relatively traditional expressions which clearly resemble the classic named-brand vermouths of Italy and France to new-world vermouths with vibrant, intense flavour that are often inspired by the creativity and innovation that comes from brewing and distilling. As well as recognisable international styles, many producers are also using native NZ botanicals to make vermouths and aperitifs that are wonderfully terroir-driven and could only ever be made here in New Zealand.
What should you expect from Aperitivo Aotearoa?
First off it’s a chance to taste 15+ products from some of the best producers in New Zealand to discover what you like and what makes craft vermouth and aperitifs different from mass market ones. You’ll also get to talk to the producers to discover how they make these products and how they can best be enjoyed. You’ll also get to meet and chat with other vermouth and aperitif lovers, enjoy food matched to the vermouths and you’ll be able to finish up the event with a vermouth based cocktail made by the amazing Panacea team.
The event starts at 5pm on Wednesday 27 May and all of the producers (and the Panacea team) would love to see you there. Tickets are $40 (+booking fee) and are available on Humanitix. If you work in the trade there is an event earlier in the day, email me wine@knownunknown.co.nz for a trade registration link.
The seven producers
144 Islands (Auckland / Bay of Islands) — Winemaker Jake Dromgool works from a vineyard planted 300m above sea level in the hills outside Kerikeri, farmed organically and without irrigation. His vermouth range is the closest thing in New Zealand to a literal taste of place: Vermouth #1 is built on Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris and Chardonnay, fortified with distillates of Kerikeri lemon, kawakawa, kūmarahou, tarata, mānuka and kānuka flowers; Vermouth #2 uses a Syrah base infused with Kerikeri orange, tōtara, kahikatea, matai, kauri and northern rātā — essentially Puketi forest in a glass. There’s a rosé-based floral #3 and a coastal Vermentino #4 with horopito, olive wood and kelp. Hyperlocal.
Duncan’s Brewing Co (Kāpiti) — A brewery best known for pastry stouts, raspberry-ripple sours and a Japanese yuzu lager taking up bench space at a vermouth event might raise an eyebrow, but it shouldn’t. Duncan’s has spent a decade making it their whole personality to drag flavour out of unexpected places, and the same instincts of layered sweetness, big aromatics, no fear of the ridiculous translate naturally to aperitivo. If you want to see what happens when brewing brains get loose with botanicals and fortified wine, this is your stop.
Known Unknown (Taranaki) — My own project. A garagiste winery in Ngāmotu New Plymouth working exclusively with organic grapes since 2023, wild-fermented, unfined, unfiltered, minimal sulphur. Vermouths and aperitifs sit alongside the wines as part of the same lo-fi philosophy: process the fruit intuitively, let it tell you what it wants to be. Honey It’s Thyme dry vermouth is the one most trade people have come across; there’s usually something more experimental in the cellar door on rotation.
Mr Mug Sweet Vermouth (Auckland) — New Zealand’s first business solely dedicated to vermouth. The sweet red is built on Hawke’s Bay Pinot Gris, infused with mugwort, wormwood and chamomile, sweetened with local honey. Cleanly traditional in shape, distinctly Aotearoan in detail.
Mount Edward Winery (Central Otago) — The original. Mount Edward made what they (and most of the industry) credit as the first commercially produced new-wave vermouth in New Zealand, inspired by a trip to the Rootstock natural wine fair in Sydney. The current expression is Riesling and Chenin Blanc based, dry, with the dominant note being elderflower picked from the gardens at Felton Road. Organic, restrained, and a useful reference point for what wine-led vermouth made by people who actually know wine looks like.
Reid + Reid (Martinborough) — Brothers Stew and Chris Reid have been making gin in Martinborough since 2015, and their vermouths are essentially what happens when distillers approach the category. The dry is built by blending their native gin with Wairarapa Chardonnay and aging it in French oak with 13 botanicals including kawakawa and horopito. The red uses 100% Martinborough Pinot Noir, aromatised with a longer list — wormwood, manuka, horopito, juniper, star anise, orris and angelica root. Recommended use case: a New Zealand Martini that doesn’t taste like a compromise.
Terra Sancta (Central Otago) — Bannockburn pinot specialists with some of the oldest vines in the sub-region. Their Aperitivo Botanical is built on Central Otago Pinot Gris with sixteen botanicals — kanuka, horopito, rosehip, elderberry, yarrow, thyme, sage, hawthorn, artichoke — fortified to 18.5% and built around a bitter-orange backbone. The shorthand is “Aperol-esque” but that undersells it; this one has more depth, more energy, and is the closest thing in the country to a serious answer for a properly NZ Spritz
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About the author
Jules van Costello is the ringleader behind Aperitivo Aotearoa and is the wine and vermouth maker at Known Unknown, a garagiste winery based in Ngāmotu New Plymouth that is known for its fun, delicious, organic and lo-fi wine, vermouth and aperitifs. He is a vermouth evangelical and semi-retired drinks writer, having penned three books about wine and beer in New Zealand. As well as working in his own business he helps hospo, food and beverage businesses get the most out of their digital marketing budgets.