Baldoria Dry Vermouth

Baldoria Dry Vermouth is an 18% ABV Italian dry vermouth (750ml) built on a Piedmontese Chardonnay base with estate-grown botanicals. It earned a Master medal at The Spirits Business Speciality Spirits Masters in 2020, one of the highest distinctions in the competition's vermouth category.

Quick Facts: ABV: 18%  |  Origin: Boves, Piedmont, Italy  |  Style: French-Style Dry Vermouth  |  Producer: Baldoria (Ernest Spirits)

Production & Heritage

Baldoria is produced in Boves, a small town in the Piedmontese province of Cuneo, at the foot of the Maritime Alps. The project is a collaboration between master distillers Piero Nuvolini and Enrico Giordana and Ernest Spirits co-founders Daniel Schmidt and Dotan Shalev. The base wine is Chardonnay grown and vinified in Piedmont, and the botanicals undergo separate macerations in a hydro-alcoholic solution of grain-neutral spirit and water before blending with the wine — a technique that allows precise control over each botanical's extraction. What truly separates this vermouth from most of its peers is provenance: the botanicals are cultivated on a dedicated 10-acre plot adjacent to the distillery without pesticides or herbicides, while ingredients not grown in-house are foraged in the surrounding Alpine foothills in partnership with the local community.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: The nose opens with bright garden herbs — sage and rosemary dominate — before giving way to warm allspice and dried fruit. A current of fresh ginger lifts the aromatics and keeps them lively.

Taste: On entry, the palate is crisp and herbaceous, immediately registering that Chardonnay freshness. Mid-palate, cinnamon and clove emerge alongside bitter root complexity, adding depth without heaviness. A subtle thread of sweetness balances the savory, bitter backbone.

Finish: The finish is clean and medium in length, with lingering rosemary and a dry, zesty close. Bitter root and ginger echo gently as the herbs fade.

How to Drink Baldoria Dry

Chilled and neat in a small wine glass is the most revealing serve, allowing the estate-grown herbs to speak clearly; a single ice cube also works well on warm days. For cocktails, Baldoria Dry excels in a Classic Martini, where its herb-forward profile adds structure and aromatic lift to London dry gins. It performs equally well in a Bamboo (with fino sherry), its alpine herbal character complementing sherry's salinity, and in an El Presidente, where its ginger and sage notes play against aged rum and orange curaçao.

Best For

• Upgrading your home Martini with a vermouth that has genuine botanical provenance
• Gifting a cocktail enthusiast who appreciates artisan, small-production ingredients
• Exploring Piedmontese aperitivo culture beyond the standard sweet vermouth category
• Building a premium home bar anchored by award-winning modifiers

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Baldoria Dry taste like? Baldoria Dry is bright, fresh, and herb-forward, dominated by sage, rosemary, and ginger with supporting notes of cinnamon, clove, and bitter roots over a crisp Chardonnay base.

How does Baldoria Dry compare to Dolin Dry? Both are French-style dry vermouths with herbal profiles, but Baldoria Dry leans more decisively into savory, alpine herb character from its estate-grown botanicals, while Dolin Dry tends toward a lighter, more floral and citrus-driven palate. Baldoria's Piedmontese Chardonnay base also gives it a slightly rounder mouthfeel compared to Dolin's leaner structure.

Is Baldoria Dry good for a Martini? It is an excellent Martini vermouth — its pronounced sage, rosemary, and ginger aromatics stand up to gin without overwhelming it, and the 18% ABV integrates smoothly into the drink's balance.

Where is Baldoria Dry made? Baldoria Dry is produced in Boves, in the province of Cuneo, Piedmont, Italy, at a facility surrounded by its own 10-acre botanical garden at the foothills of the Maritime Alps.

What foods pair well with Baldoria Dry? Briny green olives and marcona almonds echo its savory herbaceousness. Grilled white fish with lemon benefits from the vermouth's sage and ginger notes. Aged hard cheeses like Parmigiano-Reggiano complement its bitter root undertones, and charcuterie boards with prosciutto crudo mirror its Piedmontese origins. Light herb-dressed salads also work well as a simple aperitivo pairing.

What sizes does Baldoria Dry come in? Baldoria Dry Vermouth is available in the standard 750ml bottle.

Is Baldoria Dry worth the price? Baldoria Dry positions as a premium craft vermouth, sitting above mass-market options like Martini Extra Dry but in line with other artisan producers; its estate-grown botanicals, Master-medal pedigree, and Piedmontese Chardonnay base justify its place in that tier.

Why Baldoria Dry?

Very few vermouth producers grow their own botanicals, and fewer still do so without synthetic pesticides or herbicides — that estate-grown approach gives Baldoria Dry a directness and freshness that shelf-stable dried-herb vermouths rarely match. The Master medal at The Spirits Business Speciality Spirits Masters 2020 confirmed its standing among top-tier dry vermouths internationally. Its Piedmontese Chardonnay base is a meaningful departure from the neutral white wines typical of the category, adding texture and regional identity. For anyone who treats vermouth as more than an afterthought in the cocktail glass, this bottling rewards the attention.