Do we consider dry vermouth to be sweet?

Customer Inquiry

I ordered a dirty martini the other day at a restaurant I had never been to so i said to the server something along the lines of “with a good pour of vermouth” because I know so many bartenders have shifted to leaving it out in dirty martinis, but i quite like vermouth so i wanted to make sure it was included

the server asked if i wanted it “extra sweet” which didnt really seem like what i was asking for b/c ive never considered a dirty martini to be sweet so i just clarified what i meant about the vermouth and she confirmed that that’s considered “extra sweet”

the martini was just fine so is this a terminology thing im just unaware of (like the dry vs extra dry confusion)

in bartendersby speckofSTARDUST

84%

azerty543

That's weird. A "wet" martini would be more common. That being said, dry vermouth is sweet, just not as much as blanc or sweet vermouth.

YoohooCthulhu

Yeah, I think the bartender just mixed up her terms. Outside of martinis dry vermouth isn’t used that much, so maybe she’s thinking of drinks with red vermouth, where adding more usually makes it sweeter

Wrong-Shoe2918

Blanc is so underrated in fruity, just sweet enough cocktails. There seems to be such an aversion to vermouth like it’s trendy to hate it

Time_on_my_hands

I'm such a fucking idiot. I spent years thinking a dry martini was a martini with dry vermouth.

To be fair, I had tooooons of patrons tell me I made the best martinis so idk wtf happened.

Ambitious-Way8906

you aren't an idiot. people ordering the damn things have flip flopped on the meaning of extra dry or dry martinis even in the last 5 years, sometimes it means no vermouth, sometimes it means extra

Time_on_my_hands

I eventually just started asking people if they wanted vermouth or not and how much

Ambitious-Way8906

this is the way

Dangerous-Service588

That is actually the original meaning, the martinez was a popular cocktail that predated the ‘dry’ martini(ez), which is more or less just a Martinez with dry vermouth instead of sweet vermouth. Then ‘dry’ eventually came to mean less vermouth

Time_on_my_hands

This is so silly. Why can't it just be consistent

WestbrookDrive

If you say sweet I'm putting sweet vermouth in it.

eoinsageheart718

For me it would be Blanc Vermouth but I would double check for sure

digitalfoe

This situation I'd most-thank-likely walk away even more confused after consulting with the guest.

pleathershorts

Dry Vermouth tastes acidic, herbaceous, and floral. To some people, the floral notes read sweet, and certain dry vermouths will be sweeter than others. Your bartender used the wrong terminology, though; sweet vermouth is dark in color and infused with warm spice. It is used in certain styles of martinis, but what you asked for is what I’d call a “wet” dirty martini. Either way, the way you ordered it was perfectly clear and you liked the drink, so sounds like a win!

digitalfoe

Have you tried Maurin dry vermouth - it's stunning

pleathershorts

I haven’t had the pleasure! Thank you for the recommendation, I’ll have to find some this week.

Shameless plug here for Laie Sweet Vermouth as well. Newly imported to the US from Spain, and it is fantastic. Blows Antica Formula out of the water

RalphInMyMouth

GrizabellaGlamourCat

Did they use sweet red vermouth?

cited

Vermouth is still wine and sweeter than vodka or gin. I would not say "sweet" with vermouth if I didn't want sweet vermouth. You're asking for confusion there.

VaporSpectre

Bartender is wrong, but I've seen people think Lillet Blanc is still a "dry" vermouth simply because it's white. It is not dry, not at all.

Also some "red" or "sweet" vermouths just straight up taste like sherry. Probably because they're made by sherry houses that slap "vermouth" on the label after some botanical contact, just to expand their catalogue.

Duckwithers

Well, Lillet Blanc isn't a vermouth at all. There is no wormwood, so it's classed as a wine aperitif, same as cocchi americano.

Khajo_Jogaro

Is wine aperitif the same thing as an “aromatized wine”? I thought that’s what vermouths and lillet and stuff like that were classified as

Duckwithers

They're not the same thing no but a product could be both. You are correct that they are both classed as that. Vermouth is technically also a wine aperitif but lillet is not a vermouth.

corpus-luteum

Bartender meant to say "Extra wet". I'm sure. I think it's an easy mistake for novices to make. They know there is a name for the drink you've ordered, and a wet dry martini doesn't compute, so they go for sweet.

As far as I'm aware, there is no such thing as an "extra sweet" Martini. But there is an "extra dry"/"extra wet". But as you say, the trend is to eliminate the Vermouth so bartenders are not getting that experience.

Khajo_Jogaro

Everybody keeps saying bartender, but it was the server taking the order. I have servers at work that say silly shit like that too lol

One rang in a scotch side car, and I waited to make it. I’m like “I can make a side car with scotch, but they’re traditionally made with brandy/cognac”. She though scotch was the base spirit lol

ultravioletblueberry

I mean, dirty is also different. That’s olive. But no, if someone says sweet vermouth, I’m not putting a dry vermouth in.

Responsible_Gap8104

Nah, your server just didnt know the correct terminology. Which leads me to believe the bartender either doesnt know, or isnt a good teacher.

Perhaps the server only knows of vermouth via manhattans, which use sweet vermouth. Regardless...i would not go back for a martini at that restaurant.

Furthur

🤦‍♀️

SpaceFace5000

Pour yourself a shot of dolin dry and tell me whether you think it's sweet or not. It's not bitter that's for sure.