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Refers to a wine with a level of alcohol that is out of balance with its acid and fruit. The impression of excessive alcohol produces a slight burning “hit” at the top of the nasal passages and on the palate.

Vermouth was first created in England as an inexpensive liquor meant to be an after-dinner treat.

Answer: False.

The martini would be nowhere without Italy’s Piedmont region, where vermouth was first created and commercially sold in the 1700s. Vermouth is a red or white wine that has been infused with a secret blend of more than a hundred aromatic spices, barks, bitter herbs, and flavorings, such as angelica, anise, cinnamon, coriander, ginger, quinine, rhubarb, and saffron. Before it was banned in the early 20th century, wormwood was also added (vermouth comes from the German word wermut, or “wormwood.”) After the wine is infused, it is then fortified to raise the alcohol content to 15-21 percent. While red vermouth is generally sweet, its white counterpart can be dry or semisweet.

“Great wine is all about nuance, surprise, subtlety, expression, qualities that keep you coming back for another taste. Rejecting a wine because it is not big enough is like rejecting a book because it is not long enough, or a piece of music because it is not loud enough.”

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