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"Noilly Prat is a necessary component of a dry martini. Without it you can make a Sidecar, a Gimlet, a White Lady, or a gin and bitters, but you cannot make a dry martini." -- W. Somerset Maugham (1958)Are you A. a cocktail purist or B. a lucky stiff with a climate-controlled storage space? It's time to pair up and start stashing, 'cause the Noilly Prat Dry Vermouth you've been mixing into your Martinis since time immemorial is about to go the way of the Concorde. The Wall Street Journal reports that the makers of the august aperitif plan to expand the distribution of their "original formula," the European standard, to the exclusion of the current US version. Problem is, dry Martinis are a uniquely American construct, and the Euro version is, well, not exactly an ideal swap-in. It's regarded as a stand-alone beverage, rather than a cocktail ingredient, and from all reports, shies far from dry and subtle in several recpects.
"How sugary is it? If you took an old bottle of the dry vermouth and mixed it half-and-half with the Sauternes-sweet aperitif wine Lillet, you'd have a pretty good approximation of what to expect.
With the European Noilly Prat you won't get the crisp and untinged visual clarity now expected of a Martini unless you dial the vermouth back to about an eighth or a tenth of the mix." -- Eric Felten, Wall Street Journal
Yeeks! I've all but entirely shifted my loyalty toward Vya Vermouth over the past few years, but this news has me a tad shaken up. Anyone have a bit of cellar space to spare? I'll bring the olives and the D.H. Krahn.
Thanks to our pal Chess Ninja for this timely tip.
[via: The Wall Street Journal]
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1-11-2009 @9:07AM Andrew said... Good, hopefully bars will switch to Vya dry since it is far superior to Noilly Prat.
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1-11-2009 @9:16AM Scott said... As I'm not a martini drinker, and I love both vermouth and Lillet (sometimes on the rocks, individually), I'll be curious to try it! Sorry to be the unwanted silver lining. Please continue on with the righteous indignation.
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1-11-2009 @12:35PM Kat Kinsman said... Hi Scott -- I'm a huge Lillet fan as well, and I'm certainly looking forward to trying this. I just wish it were an extra option, rather than completely supplanting many folks' lifelong standard. My friend's grandmother, for instance, is gonna flip right out. She's enjoyed her late afternoon dry Martini exactly the same way for decades. It's a ritual. Who knows? Maybe she'll like it. Fingers crossed.
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1-13-2009 @11:51AM eas said... For alternatives, perhaps look to see what top bartenders in NY and SF are switching to for making dry martinis.
For all of the fuss, the new Noilly Dry does make for a nice aperitif wine, as it is consumed in the south of France.
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6-12-2010 @2:28AM Gregory Pease said... One interesting note - the Noilly Prat that Somerset Maugham is quoted as de rigeur to a dry martini, and I happen to agree with him, even 51 years later, was actually the same as the formulation now being imported into the US. He'd be perfectly content with a martini made with it.
I had a 5:1 Citadelle martini with the "new" NP vermouth tonight, and it was quite lovely, if very slightly straw tinted. My inclination for the next round would be 7:1, at least with the same gin. Far from the mess Felten predicted. I wouldn't use it with a less dry dry gin. This version is less tart, slightly fruity, with a lingering finish that is less earthy and bitter than the old US version. I quite like it, really. It would be nice to have the choice, but I can live with this one. And, Vya is better than the old NP, anyway.
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