Wine Spectator: Why Vermouth Is the Perfect Bridge to Cocktails for Wine Lovers

And why you should be storing this Martini staple in the fridge

By Kenny Martin

For decades, vermouth has been accumulating dust on the back bar, where a lonely green bottle waits to be used sparingly—if at all—in a dry Martini.

Luckily for wine and spirits lovers, change is in the air. In the past decade, established brands have upped their game, and small producers are making outstanding versions in both traditional and experimental styles. Vermouth generally offers excellent value, with most bottles priced less than $40. And vermouth is highly versatile—suitable for sipping on the rocks, mixing up a cocktail or savoring straight from a wineglass.

“Vermouth is the best of both worlds for me as a wine person,” says Madeline Maldonado, beverage director at José Andrés’ Mercado Little Spain. Its versatility, range of styles and ability to express terroir make it a natural bridge between wine and spirits—and a stylish addition to any home bar.

With soaring quality and diversity, there’s never been a better time to appreciate this fortified and aromatized wine.

What Is Vermouth, and How Is It Made?

Traditionally, the base wine for all vermouth is white. Most sweet vermouths get their color from a combination of sugar, botanicals and sometimes colorants. Spirit is added to the base wine, which results in an alcohol by volume between 13 and 22 percent. Alec Kass, who has assembled a list of over 200 vermouths as beverage director at New York’s Rosevale Cocktail Room at the Civilian Hotel, says vermouth “is closer to wine, in many respects, than it is to spirits.” It can be drunk straight, in a wineglass, on the rocks or in a dazzling array of cocktails.

Vermouth’s defining botanical is wormwood. (The name “vermouth” may have come from wermut, the German word for wormwood.) While some countries require the inclusion of at least a little wormwood in order for something to be called “vermouth,” most producers don’t use much. And some, particularly those in the New World, avoid wormwood entirely. Other common botanicals include gentian, cinchona, rhubarb, cinnamon and citrus, and the number of botanicals in vermouth can range from a mere handful to more than 50.

There’s evidence that fortified and aromatized wine, some of which included wormwood, was produced across the ancient world, from China to Greece and beyond. Wine was commonly fortified for preservation, and botanicals were often added for purported medicinal benefits. While doctors today are unlikely to espouse vermouth as a cure-all, its appetite-stimulating properties give it a starring role in aperitivo hours across the globe.

Sweet

Sweet vermouths deliver complexity of flavor—from bitter to nutty, piney to fruity—that few beverages can match.

Navazos Palazzi

Spain | $32 | 17.5% ABV
A collaboration between the boutique Sherry négociant Equipo Navazos and the importer Nicolas Palazzi, this standout boasts a base of oloroso Sherry aged five years in oak. Red currant, pumpkin pie spices, Mexican chocolate, salted nougat.

Imbibe Magazine: 13 to Try: Vermouths

NAVAZOS-PALAZZI VERMUT ROJO

Some of the most lusciously drinkable vermouths these days are coming from Spain. And this arresting rojo proves that sippable doesn’t mean simplistic. Hailing from Jerez, this oloroso-based vermouth from wine and sherry negociant Equipo Navazos and self-described “provider of geeky spirits” importer PM Spirits is as sultry and elaborate as they come. It features a texture so robust it’s almost chewy and a skillfully stacked set of floral botanicals and spice that rings every aromatic bell. Pour it over ice to taste its flavors slowly unfurl. Or mix it into a mezcal Negroni if you want to blow the roof off the place. $34.96, astorwines.com

Wine Enthusiast: Why Spanish Brandy Needs a Rebrand

There are many garish bottles on liquor store shelves, but none do more peacocking than Brandy de Jerez. Surely, you’ve noticed the bottles I’m talking about—even if, like most people, you’ve never bought one. Most Spanish brandies boast crimson or gold labels. One dons a pretty ribbon, while a rival sports an intricate faux-gilded pattern. Some are affixed with regal wax seals, while others announce their presence in fancy Renaissance-Faire-ish fonts. Then there are the courtly names themselves: Carlos I, Cardenal Mendoza, Gran Duque d’Alba.

“Subtlety isn’t the middle name of Jerez’s brandy men,” once wrote spirits critic F. Paul Pacult in his encyclopedic guide, Kindred Spirits.

In the past, I’ve described Brandy de Jerez as that buddy who tries just a bit too hard—the one with the flashy watch, the giant belt buckle, the ridiculous gold chain or too much cologne. Sometimes, when I open a bottle, I feel as though I should be wearing a ruffled collar, like a courtier of Philip IV. Regardless, I happen to enjoy Brandy de Jerez. I believe, for instance, that it works better in many classic brandy cocktails than Cognac. But I often feel like the odd one out with this opinion.

My big takeaway? Spanish brandy is in desperate need of a rebrand, and there has mercifully been a small movement toward change in the right direction. But before I get into the signs of hope for Spanish brandy, it’s important to consider the larger state of affairs.

Last year, François Monti, a drinks writer based in Madrid, called out Spanish brandy in his industry newsletter, Jaibol. The rant was prompted by Monti’s outrage over a historic Brandy de Jerez brand’s attempt to reinvent itself as a drink to be mixed with Coca-Cola. Brandy de Jerez, Monti writes, is an appellation “not very clear about where it is going.”

It remains a fact that fewer and fewer people drink Brandy de Jerez. Since 2008, total sales have dropped from 45 million liters to around nine million liters, with consumption dropping 30 percent between 2012 and 2016 alone. During the last decade, exports fell an additional 15%, and things continue to trend downward. Spanish brandy’s largest export markets are now the Philippines and Equatorial Guinea—the latter consuming six times more Brandy de Jerez than the U.S.

Why is this? In his newsletter, Monti minces no words. “Brandy de Jerez does not stand for the quality of its raw material,” he writes. Terroir also means little: “It is very complicated to talk about the terroir of Brandy de Jerez… the vast majority of the raw material comes from outside the [Sherry] triangle,” the historic region bounded by the city of Jerez on the east and to the northwest and southwest respectively, the ports of Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa Maria.

It’s hard to say what terroir (or transparency) even means for Brandy de Jerez. The name itself invokes the city in Andalucía that’s famous for Sherry. But the grape mostly used for the brandy is not Palomino (as with Sherry) but Airen, an insipid neutral grape said to be the most planted in the world, grown mostly on agribusiness vineyards in La Mancha. Most of the brandy is distilled outside of the Sherry triangle, what the regulatory council calls the “processing zone,” before it comes to age in the vast solera cellars back in Jerez. By law, Brandy de Jerez must age in Sherry barrels, but there’s little differentiation between brands.

Then there are Spanish brandy’s elevated sugar levels: Up to 35 grams of sugar per liter is allowed. This sweetness goes against the current consumer demands for drier spirits.

Finally, Monti called out the dated, stodgy brand image:

“Emperors, cardinals, aristocrats, great battles of Catholicism: the names and image of some of the brands are an obstacle for a more modern consumer. Carlos I, a brand that has made a great effort to modernize its image and that has a clear strategy of going towards the premium segment, still mentions on its website ‘Spirit of Conquest.’ ¡Ay!”

It adds up to a spirit that the younger generation in Spain sees as hopelessly old-fashioned, the drink of their grandfathers—with a cringe-y legacy of being cosa de hombres (“a man thing”) as this television ad for Soberano from the 1960s suggests. (Even darker was this horrible ad.)

All of this is a shame. I have been a big advocate for Spanish brandy over the years. Back in 2015, Monti and I actually presented a panel on the spirit at Tales of the Cocktail. Even then, we spoke about the same challenges that Brandy de Jerez faces today, which tells you how little has changed in the past eight years.

At the time, we implored brands to re-evaluate the high sugar content and additives in a world that wants products that are dry and additive free. We bemoaned the low level of alcohol by volume. Most of it is imported into the U.S. at just 40%, but much of what’s sold in Spain and elsewhere falls below even that, down to 36% abv. We even wore ruffled collars to underscore silliness and outdatedness of the category’s imagery.

In Monti’s article, the last straw for him was the suggestion of combining brandy with Coca-Cola, pushed by one big brand’s marketing department. He pointed out a similarly misguided marketing attempt a decade ago by the producers of Calvados, a similarly troubled spirit, who tried to push something called the Calvados Tonic. In France, Calvados Tonic was an unmitigated failure as a marketing campaign. The Spanish-brandy-and-cola, I believe, will meet the same fate. “One of the most uncomfortable truths in the spirits industry is that hardly any recent trends have been created by brands,” Monti notes.

The real challenge for Brandy de Jerez is to understand what premium spirits drinkers really want. But there are signs of hope in a growing number of smaller producers who are more transparent about origin and aging.

Among them is a project by Sherry negociant Equipo Navazos, which has partnered with importer Nicolas Palazzi of PM Spirits to release a series of single-cask brandies, all without additives and bottled at cask strength.

On several occasions, I’ve tasted these brandies from the barrel with Eduardo Oreja of Equipo Navazos. These are racy, elegant, dry brandies that still retain the rich, dried fruit and full-bodied characteristics of classic Brandy de Jerez. This is revolutionary stuff.

“I had always associated Spanish brandy with some subpar version of Henny VS, some dark syrupy crap that makes the floor sticky if you drop some,” says Palazzi. That was before he tasted Equipo Navazos’ casks. “My mind was blown. I realized that at its core the additive-free product can be magnificent.”

I love the Navazos Palazzi 7-year-old aged in amontillado cask. This unique brandy was made from 100% Pardina (an obscure grape I didn’t know) and bottled at cask strength, 42.5% abv. You can find it here and here for $80. There are also still a few rare bottles of the stunning Navazos Palazzi fino Sherry cask floating around (such as here), also for around $80. For a premium brandy, something like this under $100 is well worth grabbing.

Navazos Palazzi’s most recent brandy release is aged in Pedro Ximenéz casks (bottled at 43% abv) is delicious, rounder and darker than the amontillado or fino casks. Though the cask is part of a classic solera, the average age of the brandy is at least 35 years old. It’s slightly pricier, at around $130 per bottle.

While those single-cask selections may represent the zenith of Brandy de Jerez production, I still also recommend checking out a few of the classic expressions for comparison. I’ve always liked Lepanto Solera Gran Reserva, which at under $50 is a very good value, and relatively easy to find. Instead of Airen, Lepanto uses the same Palomino grape from which Sherry is made. The result is a brighter, nuttier and more complex brandy than most in the category.

And if I ever want to remind myself what old-school Spanish brandy is like (complete with garish label and packaging) I go for the Gran Duque d’Alba. The Duke brings all that big sweet, ripe, creamy, molasses flavor, though you can still feel the attractive notes of the Sherry cask. For $40, it’s a solid cocktail pour.

Mix it in the classic brandy cocktails we talked about a few weeks ago and see for yourself. My personal favorite is a drink I call the Little Madrid (recipe below). With all apologies to my colleague Monti in Madrid, you might also even enjoy it with a Coca-Cola.

Good vermouth makes a great aperitif, fueling a delightful transitional moment before a meal.

Navazos Palazzi Vermut Rojo Jerez de la Frontera, 17.5 percent

This excellent vermouth is a collaboration between Equipo Navazos, a boutique sherry négociant that has been instrumental in the revival of sherry over the last 20 years, and Nicolas Palazzi of PM Spirits, which imports small batches of extraordinary spirits. The stamp of oloroso is clear on this lightly sweet blend. It is infused with spices and herbs to create a mellow, complex vermouth that refreshes as well as intrigues.

…PM Spirits, which imports small batches of extraordinary spirits.

SPIRITS: THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG

BY ANTONIO GALLONI | DECEMBER 08, 2022

It all started innocently enough. Over the last few years, I have seen a marked increase in spirits made by winemakers. I thought it would be fun to taste them and write them all up. That was the genesis for this report. But then more and more samples arrived, and before I knew it, the article had morphed into a broad survey of spirits of all kinds. This article is clearly not comprehensive to any one category, but rather intended as a collection of spirits I think Vinous readers will enjoy.

As I started tasting through these spirits, I wondered if my approach to tasting wine and Champagne would be applicable, or if instead, I needed an entirely new methodology for looking at quality. I asked myself if there are really marked differences between several raspberry eaux de vie, for example. It turns out spirits can absolutely be assessed for aromatics, fruit, texture, finish and a number of criteria used in evaluating wine. If anything, the alcohol in most categories acts as an amplifier of those qualities and also accentuates both strengths and flaws. And yes, raspberry eaux de vie can be very different.

Where possible I have indicated lot numbers, although these aren’t always available in the world of spirits. I would like to see that change so consumers can know they are buying the same product I tasted and reviewed. In this regard, parts of the spirits world share some basic principles with other beverages such as NV Champagne, but also soft drinks and beer, where the goal is to create a ‘consistent’ product from year to year. There are virtues in that, and it is a skill, but I believe small batch bottlings that are differentiated are far more interesting, certainly far more interesting for the inquisitive reader looking for something that is truly distinctive. For now, I have relaxed the rule I have for NV Champagne where I only review bottlings that have a base vintage or disgorgement date listed.

But that does make me wonder what the future is for craft spirits. About a decade ago, I sat in the Krug tasting room with then-CEO Margareth Henriquez and Olivier Krug and explained that I would not review their Grande Cuvée because there was no way to ensure the batch I tasted was the same wine in the market. I suggested adding a base vintage or disgorgement date, which would differentiate releases, make each release special, and then, in time create opportunities for thematic tastings and/or special packaging, like mixed cases. “Our customers have no interest in this information,” was the reply.

Readers might find this hard to believe, but at the time, the Grand Cuvée struggled mightily in the market. It did not sell. And this was not that long ago. For a time, the half bottles were dumped in elite New York City restaurants (likely elsewhere too), where they were sold for next to nothing. Then, Krug began experimenting with thematic names for each release, before settling on the Edition system. A stroke of genius. Guess what happened? For the first time ever, Grande Cuvée became an allocated wine. All sorts of comparative tastings emerged, as did boxed sets that offer a combination of releases.

To be sure, spirits are different. Many are made in tiny quantities and on a far smaller scale than wine or Champagne. Unlike wine, bottles are opened and often enjoyed over a period of time, so comparative tastings are less the norm. Even so, I would like to see better and more consumer-friendly labeling. There is a possible parallel with the world of grower Champagne, where an increasing number of producers detail varietal breakdown and the exact source of their fruit. Why would that not be applicable to a fine source of pears or raspberries for eau de vie, or a specific breakdown of lots in a Cognac? All information like that does is create greater consumer interest.

I tasted the spirits in this report in November and December 2022.

The Eau de Vie Damson Plum from Capreolus is laced with hints of dried fruit, crushed flowers, herbs, mint and red stone fruit. Exotic and nuanced the Plum Brandy is exquisite. It is an especially floral, savory plum spirit. This fruit was sourced in Vale of Evesham, This is bottle 118 of 336.

The Eau de Vie Raspberry melds together plenty of fruit character, but in a serious, almost imposing style. This is not an easygoing spirit at all. Then again, approximately 75 pounds of fruit yield one liter of eau de vie. Sweet floral and herbal accents add lift. There is a bit of angularity and that leaves the Raspberry feeling a bit tense next to the other eaux de vie in the range. This is bottle 257 of 301.

The Eau de Vie Quince is floral, lifted and also very refined on the palate. A spirit of understatement and class, the Quince is soft-spoken, with impeccable balance, fine length and tons of sheer appeal. Dried floral and herbal notes resonate on the finish, but it is the overall balance I am most drawn to here. This is bottle 48 of 116.

The Eau de Vie Poire Williams (100% Bartlett Pear) from Cazottes is fabulous. Creamy and textured, the Poire Williams soars out of the glass with stunning aromatic complexity. Soft contours add raciness to this decidedly polished, exuberant eau di vie. The style is one of sublime refinement and class - perhaps too much for some palates - but all the elements are so well balanced. This release is a total knockout.

The Eau de Vie Reine Claude Doreé (100% Greengage Plum) is a wild, exotic eau de vie. The aromatics alone are crazy. A whole range of floral and savory top notes give the Reine Claude Dorée its distinctive personality. Fruit is more in the background in this captivating spirit from Laurent Cazottes. The bright, clean finish is a thing of beauty.

The Haut-Armagnac La Réserve is very pretty, aromatic and lifted. What this young Haut-Armagnac lacks in age it more than makes up for with its exquisite balance and finesse. There are no hard edges whatsoever. Sweet spice, leather and floral notes give the Réserve notable aromatic presence to match its mid-weight personality. La Réserve is a blend of young Ugni Blanc and Colombard, usually about six years old, aged in 100% new French oak and bottled at 45% abv.

The 2011 Haut-Armagnac La Flamme (Ugni Blanc, Colombard) is a blend of single barrels bottled at full proof. Rich and explosive, La Flamme is a heady, exotic Haut-Armagnac that delivers the goods big time. Here, too, the balance is exquisite, especially for a spirit that is a little more than a decade old. Light caramel, spice, herb, maraschino cherry and toast notes build into the pure, persistent finish. This is a terrific showing. Abv is 50.5%.

The 1994 Brut de Fût is a single cask blend of 65% Ugni Blanc and 35% Colombard bottled at cask strength, unfiltered and with no additives. Gently mellowed by time, the 1994 is a wonderfully expressive Armagnac. Soft contours wrap around a gentle core of macerated cherry, spice, leather, dried herbs and light caramel notes. This is all understatement and elegance. I very much admire the precision here. Spring frost and a dry summer yielded a small crop of ripe grapes. The 1994 spent a total of 27 years in wood.

The Cognac Grand Champagne Chai Paradis Très Vieille Réserve is a single cask bottling from Frapin's Paradis cellar. Hints of smoke, caramel, dried flowers, leather and orange peel lend notable aromatic presence. A Cognac of understatement and finesse, the Très Vieille Réserve is wonderfully expressive right out of the gate. Abv is 42.8%.

The Eau de Vie de Cidre Double Zero is gorgeous. It was made from more than thirty varieties of apples, blending bitter, bittersweet, sweet and sweet varieties. Fruit is harvested, then cellared for a few months to concentrate the flavors, before fermentation and distillation begin. Laser-like in its focus, with gorgeous aromatics, this eau de vie is seriously impressive. A glass will provide pleasure to both the hedonistic and intellectual senses. This is L.20.

The Rhum Agricole Organic is a powerful spirit that makes its full-proof felt. Flavors and textures are dialed up to eleven. Hints of lime, ginger and spice add complexity to this intense, wonderfully complex rum. Although a bit of a splurge, I would be thrilled to have it on my bar for cocktails. The Organic is made from hand-harvested sugar cane, distilled in copper creole stills and bottled at 71.2% abv

The Rhum Agricole Les Mangles is a single parcel, single cane rum. Rich and explosive in feel, the Mangles possesses tremendous depth right out of the gate. Dried flowers, leather, earthiness, herbs and a touch of mint add striking complexity, but more than anything, the Mangles is a rum of textural density. Pretty floral and spice accents round out the finish. It's another intense, full-bodied rum from Père Labat, bottled at 70.7% abv.

The 2009 Single Barrel Fut is a tiny bottling of 12-year-old Rhum Agricole aged in a bourbon barrel. Soft and delicate, with striking complexity, the 2009 is lights out. Maraschino cherry, spice, dried flowers, orange peel, leather, cedar, chocolate and sweet toasted oak lend tons of aromatic and flavor complexity. The 2009 is outstanding, but readers have to expect a rum with a pretty strong oak imprint. Time in wood does seem to attenuate the power found in Père Labat's young Rhum Agricole. The 2009 Single Barrel was bottled at 61% abv. I loved it.

The Armagnac Les Carré des Fantômes is a single parcel field-blend bottling of Plant de Graisse, Mauzac Blanc, Meslier St François, Jurançon Blanc, Mauzac Rosé and Clairette de Gascogne, six nearly extinct varieties. It is an especially airy, floral and savory style of Armagnac, maybe a bit classically austere in profile, but also incredibly intriguing. Light in color, with slightly nutty, oxidative overtones, the Carré des Fantômes is an absolutely gorgeous spirit. It is a beautiful, eccentric Armagnac that requires an inquisitive palate to fully appreciate. Batch 08.

The 1990 Single Cask Armagnac is a fabulous choice for readers looking for an Armagnac with the gentle, burnished character that only comes from long maturation in cask. Soft and engaging, the 1990 is an absolute delight. Scents of dried figs, spice, caramel, crushed herbs, leather, barrel toastiness and dried flowers are all woven together. No topping during aging results in a spirit with gorgeous complexity that develops in a very gradual oxidation that has taken place over more than thirty years. Lovely.

The 2006 Calvados Single Cask was distilled from a mix of more than 40 varieties of apples and spent 15 years in French oak prior to being bottled at cask strength. It offers a gorgeous combination of bright fruit and the more complex notes conferred by aging in barrel, all with the softness achieved with time. Gentle smoke, spice, leather, orange peel and dried flowers all grace this exquisite, wonderfully complex, delicate Calvados.

The Armagnac XO from L'Encantada is a blend of eight barrels spanning vintages 2006 to 1986 from five different domaines. It marries the power of Armagnac with notable elegance and tons of finesse. A spirit with no hard edges and fabulous balance, the XO is magnificent. Fruit, floral, spice, dried fruit, caramel and subtle oak notes are all beautifully woven together. The XO is a fabulous introduction to a range mostly composed of single barrel offerings. The purity here is just superb. This is bottled at cask strength, so there is plenty of intensity, yet this lies on the more refined side of Armagnac.

The Corn Whisky Bota NO 2021 is a single barrel bottling made from 100% Spanish corn from the joint venture between Equipo Navazos and importer Nicolas Palazzi. It was aged for 15 years in an Oloroso Sherry cask, with no topping (hence the designation 'NO') and bottled at full proof. A powerful, explosive spirit, the Corn Whisky is packed with scents of scorched earth, game, leather and earthiness. There's not a lot of subtlety here, but I doubt that is the point. Bottled in 2021.

The Cognac Hommage a Yves & Jean-Noel Pelletan is a tiny blend comprised of one barrel of 1965 and a few demijohns going back to 1925. It is the last bottling from Palazzi's days of buying and blending Cognacs under his own label. Quite potent in the glass, the Hommage is a bit rustic, but also incredibly authentic in feel. The explosive power is palpable. It's a Cognac for readers who appreciate structure and body more than restraint. The Hommage was bottled at cask strength and dedicated to master coopers Yves and Jean-Noel Pelletan.

The Eau de Vie Gravenstein Apple is packed with fruit flavor, spice and strong dried white notes. There's wonderful savoriness and tartness to balance some of that fruity character, along with tons of depth and what comes across as strong skin character. This is one of four eau de vies in Rochelt's gift box set.

The Eau de Vie Morello Cherry is one of my favorite eau de vies in this collection. Creamy and expansive, the Morello is all finesse. Crushed red-fleshed fruit, spice, sweet floral accents and a kick of warmth all come together in a spirit that is impeccably balanced from start to finish. The depth and explosive complexity here are off the charts. This is one of four eau de vies in Rochelt's gift box set.

Rochelt's Eau de Vie Wachau Apricot is ridiculously great. Intensely aromatic, Wachau with almost tropical overtones, the Apricot is so expressive from the very first taste. Yellow orchard fruit, ginger and soaring aromatics stain the palate. It's an eau de vie that deeply satisfies both the hedonistic and intellectual senses. I will remember tasting it for a very, very long time. What a knockout. This is one of four eau de vies in Rochelt's gift box set.

The Eau de Vie Quince starts off quite subtle and then explodes through the mid-palate and into the finish. Strong mineral and earthy undertones give the Quince uncommon complexity to play off fruit flavors. Deep and expansive, with tons of character, the Quince is wonderfully complete, but also quite imposing. There's a ton of power and substance here, with an almost phenolic quality that lingers on the finish. This is one of four eau de vies in Rochelt's gift box set.

The Eau de Vie Mirabelle Plum was distilled in 2009, and then aged in glass balloons, in the classic Rochelt style. It is wild, penetrating and full of character. The feeling here is one of focus and length, more than the body found in some of the other eau de vies in this collection. Sweet floral and savory notes continually open in a spirit of uncommon finesse and nuance. The Mirabelle hovers on the palate with wonderful elegance. What a knockout.

94 POINTS Navazos Palazzi Pedro Ximenez Single Cask Brandy

This is a brandy de Jerez aged in oloroso casks, then finished three years in very old sweet Pedro Ximenez casks. The end result is an extraordinarily complex sipper that almost reads like a cocktail. The deep brown hue and bold dried fig aromas signal richness. While the first sips mingle toffee, maple, dried fruit, the finish is surprisingly dry and brisk, showing walnut skin, a hint of grapefruit peel, and cinnamon and cayenne glow. Bottled at cask strength, plan to add water or ice to mellow the appropriately fiery edge. Limited edition: 720 bottles produced. - KARA NEWMAN 

Navazos Palazzi Malt Whiskey Cask Strength [Palo Cortado Single Cask] Review

The Whiskey Tribe review of Navazos Palazzi Malt Whiskey (Palo Cortado). Spanish malt finished in a unique and rare style of Sherry cask.

Commanders and Cocktails!

Welcome to COMMANDERS AND COCKTAILS!

Some folks know that before I was able to work full time in comics, I worked in a variety of jobs in the wine and spirits field. And the final one of those was for my good friend Nicolas Palazzi’s PM Spirits. Just COMMANDER IN CRISIS, PM works its ass off to be unique, to create trends rather than follow them, and offer craftsmanship and creativity in a field that has, at times, been known to stagnate. I wouldn’t be where I am, writing this, without the support of friends and employers like Nicolas.

So, I thought it would be fun to turn the tables and feature him and his crew below, offering some in-universe cocktail recipes to honor the heroes of the Crisis Command. In the paraphrased words of a greater power, when I left PM I was but the learner. Now, I am the master (well, or closer to it)! And either way, I’m happy to return the support with a feature here, and invite creatives from other fields into the world of the Crisis Command.

STEVE ORLANDO

Commanders in Crisis, Vol. 2

PRIZEFIGHTER

2oz Navazos Palazzi Malt or Corn Whisky
0.75oz La Quintinye Rouge Vermouth
0.5oz cherry liqueur
2 dashes Angostura Bitters
Barspoon Absinthe

Instructions:

Build in rocks glass over ice and stir briefly. Garnish with burnt blood orange peel.

SEER

2.5oz Neta Espadin Destilado de Agave
0.5oz La Quintinye Dry
Barspoon of olive brine
Pinch of salt

Instructions:

Build in mixing glass over ice and stir until cold. Strain into chilled cocktail glass and garnish with 3 green olives on a pick.

SAWBONES

2oz Père Labat Rhum Blanc 59%abv
4 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters
Sparkling mineral water

Instructions:

Pour Rhum into highball glass over ice. Stir briefly to chill. Top with sparkling water and bitters. Stir once again to combine. Serve without garnish. or Neat pour of Jacky Navarre Cravache d’Or Cognac

ORIGINATOR

1oz Nouaison Gin by G’Vine
0.75oz lemon juice
0.5oz Laurent Cazottes Folle Noire
0.5oz simple syrup
2oz sparkling wine

Instructions:

Build all ingredients except sparkling wine in a shaker and shake lightly to combine. Add sparkling wine to the shaker and strain into chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a spring of fresh lavender.

FRONTIER

2oz Père Labat Rhum Blanc 40% or 59% abv - Choose your strength
0.5oz Laurent Cazottes 72 Tomatoes

Instructions:

Build in mixing glass over ice and stir until cold. Strain into chilled cocktail glass and garnish with freshly ground black pepper.

COCKTAIL CREDITS: David Yi-Hsian Dong and Nicolas Palazzi of PM Spirits.

Geeky Cocktails: Meet the Man Behind the Artisanal Spirits Movement

Geeky Cocktails: Meet the Man Behind the Artisanal Spirits Movement

When Nicolas Palazzi quit his day job as a chemical engineer in 2008, the spirits world got a little more interesting. The French native had moved to New York City to manage a medical research lab, but brought with him a curiously intense affinity for rare-cask Cognac. Dismayed by the lack of like-minded, handcrafted products on the market in the U.S.—where the spirits scene was still largely focused on big-name brands despite a booming, more intelligent cocktail culture—he set out to learn the business from the ground up. He officially launched his import company, PM Spirits, in early 2011 with just two independent Cognac producers (Paul Beau, Guillon-Painturaud) and six products. Now his book includes profound Spanish brandies, grappa from famed Sicilian avant-gardiste Frank Cornelissen, and Mexican Fernet (a bitter liqueur).

Palazzi is being lauded by beverage authorities nationwide as the go-to for distillates of character and terroir, and Palazzi’s unique bottles now line the shelves of restaurant and bar greats like The NoMad in New York City, Jack Rose Dining Saloon in Washington, D.C., and Scopa Italian Roots in Venice, California. Had an interesting digestif you’d never heard of before while out dining? That might have been made possible through Palazzi’s meticulous sourcing. He talks to Vogue.com about cocktails, “geeky” spirits, and the six bottles he’s most excited about now.

The tagline on your website is “provider of geeky spirits.” What does “geeky” mean in the spirits world?

When it comes to spirits in general, one doesn’t buy a product, one buys a brand. They buy the marketing and the status that the label conveys, but they don’t have a gauge on the true quality of the stuff inside the bottle, how it was made, who made it, and why it tastes the way it does. So by “geeky,” we mean the other stuff. It’s made by real people. It has an actual flavor profile that is specific to the place in which it’s made and the ingredients it’s made from. It’s not sweetened to death, artificially colored, or made to be as innocuous as it can be.

From that perspective, it seems to be as much about supporting the little guy as it is about supplying cool products.

It absolutely is. We want them to keep doing what they’re doing. When you start working with somebody, and they’re distilling out of a shack or their house is run-down, and you come back a year and a half later and see that they’ve made improvements. . . I’m not saying it’s 100 percent because of what we’ve done, but there is something rewarding about working with real people and the fact that the money spent buying these products can go toward their living and the creative process as opposed to feeding some giant company. I have nothing against big companies, but that makes it more meaningful to me. And the other result is that we’re educating people; we’re getting the authentic stuff to the people who will care about it. We’re showing them what these spirits used to taste like before mass marketing existed and can still taste like today.

What is a typical reaction of someone tasting spirits in your portfolio who is more used to tasting name-brand products?

People are not sure what to expect. A lot of people start out thinking that they’re doing us a favor by tasting these products that they’ve never heard of before, but they end up realizing that there’s a world of difference. I had one buyer who thought he didn’t like Cognac, then after one taste of the Paul Beau VS, he lit up. He was all, “Oh, wow, that’s really interesting,” and, “That’s a set of aromas and flavors I’ve never experienced before.”

There’s something extra that happens in the brain with the sensory experience of taste. When you taste something new and you love it, there’s an emotional connection that takes place. At that point, the person is not likely to forget it. They know you’re not fooling around and will want to see what else you have in your bag, even if it’s not something that will appeal to their particular clientele. They know you’re not wasting their time.

Would you say that the movement toward artisanal spirits is picking up speed, like what we saw happen to the craft-beer category?

It has definitely changed over the last six or seven years. Before, nobody cared, really. If you take bourbon as an example, you used to be able find anything you’d want and more on the shelves for a lot less money because people just didn’t know about it. And now certain bourbons are unavailable and allocated. Spirits are becoming cool. Drinkers have started paying more attention to what they’re drinking. I think that’s good news for everyone involved.

What is the coolest cocktail that you’ve encountered made with one of your spirits?

In Texas, I saw a sidecar made with a single-cask Cognac from a producer named Gourry [de Chadeville] that I brought in last year. This Cognac is distilled in a wood-fired pot still and is 64.3 percent alcohol, so that is a pretty kick-ass sidecar. You can’t drink too many of them! And at Cane & Table in New Orleans, they’re making a daiquiri with a rum I sourced in Spain from the sherry producer Equipo Navazos. It’s a bold daiquiri and is totally delicious.

What’s the latest addition to your portfolio that you’re most excited about? The thing that we don’t know about yet but will?

Calvados! I was lucky enough to be introduced to Eric Bordelet, the cider-maker in Normandy. It turns out the guy has been distilling for a number of years but never released anything. He’s doing single-cask full-proof unfiltered Calvados, distilling from both his cidre and his poiré (pear cider). Plus, his mentor was Didier Dagueneau, the famed Pouilly-Fumé winemaker, so everything is aged in ex-Silex casks from Dagueneau. It’s incredibly cool and will be available stateside in the beginning of 2016.

Intrigued? Here are six unique bottles Palazzi recommends adding to your bar (or gifting a very good friend):

Navazos-Palazzi Double Barreled Cask Strength Spanish Rum
A 100 percent molasses-based rum from the Antilles. Dark, meaty, with a nuttiness derived from the Oloroso sherry cask it ages in for more than ten years. Finishes bone dry. Only 1,500 bottles produced per year.

H. Beudin Single Cask 18 Year Calvados
Calvados with a kick, bottled at full proof. Gives a sense of what the pure stuff tastes like when sampled from a cask. Selected by star cider-maker Eric Bordelet.

Gourry de Chadeville Grande Champagne Cognac
One-man operation led by Pierre Goursat Gourry on nearly 25 acres of vineyards in Grande Champagne. A young, bold Cognac reminiscent of ripe apple and smoke, it spends seven years in an ex-first growth Sauternes cask.

Domaine d'Aurensan 1975 Single Cask Armagnac-Ténarèze
Like a vintage-dated Armagnac on steroids, with zero sugar, zero water, and zero coloring added. Distilled by the Rozès family. Mature flavors of dried prune, leather, and earth, with a seemingly endless finish.

Laurent Cazottes Poire Williams Eau-de-Vie
Distilled from organic pears dried to concentrate their flavor and then the pits, seeds, and stalks removed. Only 200 half-bottles of this Poire Williams come in to the U.S. each year.

Frank Cornelissen MunJebel Rosso Grappa
What happens when Sicily's most emblematic natural winemaker makes grappa. Distilled in a wood-fired vapor still from volcanic Mt. Etna’s indigenous Nerello Mascalese grapes.

What is Armagnac? Exploring Cognac’s Older Cousin

How Armagnac is Made

“Essentially, Cognac is more like Tequila, and Armagnac is more like mezcal in the way it’s produced,” says Nicolas Palazzi, owner of importer and distributor, PM Spirits, “but not in flavor [although it can occasionally share similar notes with the agave spirit].” Armagnac is a bit more artisanal in nature, and every producer creates a product to their own proof and style making it a fan favorite for spirit nerds.

Armagnac is allowed to use 10 grape varieties in production, but typically only use four: Ugni blanc, Baco, Folle Blanche, and Colombard; whereas in Cognac they use around 99% Ugni blanc. More variety in the raw material allows for Armagnac to express a diversity in flavor that Cognac cannot. When you also consider the terroir — the soil, climate, and hand of the maker — Armagnac truly distinguishes itself in character.

“There is something really interesting in picking grapes and making a product that has a true personality and seeing that product at a stage where it hasn’t become a very popular spirit [like Cognac] that has been modified to try to appeal to the general public,” says Palazzi. “Armagnac is very terroir-driven, it feels like you can connect with the history of the land and its rich history.”

In terms of distillation, 95% of Armagnac production is distilled with an alembic column still, whereas Cognac has to be pot-distilled, Palazzi notes. “Some are using pot still as well,” he says, although it’s a rarity.

After being distilled, the liquid is typically aged in 400-liter French oak casks — typically local, Gascony oak — and is then classified as VS, VSOP, Napoleón, or XO (Hors d’âge), depending on how long it has been aged for, with XO being the oldest age statement meaning the distillate has seen a minimum of 10 years in the cask. It’s also common for Armagnac producers to release vintages, like wine, but this will be more of a rarity as the category continues to rise in popularity.

After aging, the Armagnac is either bottled at cask strength, or proofed down. “The reason why Cognac is typically 40% ABV is to stretch out the amount they’re able to produce because of the demand,” Palazzi notes. “In Armagnac, you’ll find more full-proof bottling because they aren’t under the pressure of hitting numbers so they can focus on creating the best product possible [regardless of proof].” This means that each bottle will have its own distinct character, which isn’t always the case with other brandies.

Some producers to note are: Domaine Boignères, Château de Pellehaut, Domaine Espérance, Domaine d’Aurensan, but there are many others creating exceptional brandies as well in the region.

READ/LISTEN HERE

Cobrafire Eau-de-Vie de Raisin

An unaged blanche (white) Armagnac produced in the Bas Armagnac sub-appellation. It’s an undiluted, unadulterated expression of exactly what a French brandy should taste like. At 51.5% ABV, it’s also begging to make it into your next Martini.

PM Spirits VS Bas Armagnac Overproof

Importer PM Spirits teamed up with renown production house, Domaine Espérance, to release their own label of VS overproof (51.7% ABV) Armagnac. For the price you’ll pay, it’s an absolute steal and must-try.

How Craft Brands Can Succeed in the Covid-19 Era

Craft brands have been in the spotlight across wine, beer, and spirits in recent years, with products from small producers becoming increasingly sought after over mass-marketed products. Consumers are seeking out fresh discoveries, and are increasingly prioritizing the production methods, ingredients, and stories behind craft beverages.

But the onset of Covid-19 has presented a new challenge: While consumers are increasing their home consumption and retail alcohol sales are up, most craft wine and spirits brands have not benefited. As much of the on-premise sector remains shuttered and many consumers turn to e-commerce to limit in-store purchasing, there is no salesperson or sommelier to champion small brands or encourage the consumer to try something new.

ACQUIRING NEW RETAIL PLACEMENTS

While stay-home mandates and on-premise closures have resulted in retail sales spikes — as of June 13, off-premise sales were up 26 percent year-over-year for the entire Covid-affected time period — retailers are still working to manage this unexpected business shift.

“They’re still in survival mode,” says Nicolas Palazzi, the owner of PM Spirits in New York, an importer and distributor specializing in artisanal spirits brands. “They have no energy or time to do any outreach or take sales calls. They’re reacting to demand, and that demand is for mainstream brands because that’s what people know.” In the first six to eight weeks of the pandemic, most of Palazzi’s sales through existing retail accounts were for inexpensive items.