Why Vermouth is a thing these days, and the venerable Cocchi brand can take much of the credit. It first rose to fame during the Belle Époque and has recently become a bartender’s darling. So crammed with flavour it’s almost dizzying, Cocchi Vermouth di Torino is still made according to a century-old recipe, though the brand has been owned by Piedmont’s winemaking Bava family since the late 1980s. Capable of taking cocktails to the next level, it’s equally amazing on its own.
Price $27.95/750 ml
Availability Vintages 461913
Fruit Cups
St Louis Fond Tradition Kriek Lambic
Rating: NNNN
Why Spontaneously fermented lambic beers flavoured with cherries like this ruby beauty, brewed at Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck in West Flanders, are hard to come by in Ontario. Wafts of cherries, spice, pomegranate and oak could trick me into thinking it was a weirdo Pinot Noir if I didn’t know better. Eight-ish on the sour scale.
Price $5.35/375 ml
Availability LCBO 447995, discontinued but may be lingering on shelves or in specialty beer joints
Wellington Against the Currant
Rating: NNN
Why This Wellie may smell more like cereal and cleaning products than like the zingy wee late-summer berries it’s infused with, but a single sip reveals the fruit. It’s like mashing a mouthful of ripe blackcurrants (sour, juicy, potent, a little bitter). An approachable sour for those wary of the style.
Price $7.95/750 ml
Availability LCBO 466326, limited quantities
Collective Arts Papaya Saison
Rating: NNN
Why A super quencher on those suffocating days when you truly comprehend the consequences of living in a body composed of 70 per cent water. Mild papaya is played up by saison-y fruit and a tropical hit of hops.
Price $14.95/6 x 355 ml, part of the Collective Arts seasonal variety pack
Availability LCBO 458596