Vermouth is one of the most iconic expressions of Piedmont’s winemaking and liqueur tradition. Officially born in Turin at the end of the 18th century, its name derives from the German Wermut – wormwood – the bitter, tonic herb that has always been its signature ingredient. Yet as early as the Middle Ages, we find traces of wines infused with medicinal herbs, used in monasteries for healing purposes or as natural preservatives.
Turin: herbs, alchemy, and liquid knowledge
In 1563, when Emanuele Filiperto moved the capital of the Duchy of Savoy from Chambéry to Turin, he set in motion a cultural transformation that would shape the city’s future. A passionate alchemy enthusiast, he invited Paracelsus and other leading minds of the time to his court, and ordered Artemisia to be planted at the Royal Palace of Venaria.
In 1583, Charles Emmanuel I issued an edict offering tax exemptions to those starting herb-related businesses. The city soon filled with apothecaries and liqueur-makers, and its distillates gained rapid renown. In 1729, the Botanical Garden was founded; in 1736, the Pharmacopoeia Taurinensis was published – already containing recipes for “wormwood wines.”
Vermouth was born out of this cultural ferment – it was a creation of the Turinese school before it was ever a commercial product.
From remedy to ritual
In 1739, the University of Confectioners and Distillers was established. Among its future members were names destined for legend – Cinzano, Gancia, Campari. In 1784, the Royal Academy of Agriculture was founded and launched the first systematic studies on wormwood. It identified Pancalieri – a small town on the Po Valley plain – as the ideal terroir.
By the 19th century, Vermouth had shifted – in use and in audience – with Turin at the center of its evolution. From domestic tonic to bourgeois pleasure, from medicinal remedy to social ritual. The earliest buzz around these new aromatized wines is said to have started in the drawing rooms of the Savoy aristocracy – particularly among the court ladies, who appreciated Vermouth’s smoothness and refinement. That female approval helped normalize Vermouth in polite society, turning it into a shared experience – something to pour, to discuss, to enjoy together.
Its rise was rapid. The late-afternoon vermutin became a staple of Turinese cafés, ushering in a golden age. A new drinking culture emerged – urban, elegant, ritualistic – giving birth to the first major industrial brands and establishing Vermouth as the symbol of the Italian aperitivo.
Evolution, export, transformation
In 1838, Vermouth began to be exported, with Argentina absorbing more than half of all production. In 1853, the opening of the Turin–Asti–Genoa railway accelerated trade routes.
Around the same time, the recipe began to change. Until the late 1800s, Vermouth was made entirely with Moscato d’Asti – a sweet, aromatic wine that required little additional sugar. But with the rise of sparkling wine production and the restrictions of Fascist-era autarky, Moscato grew scarce. Winemakers began blending it with neutral grapes like Cortese, Trebbiano, Bombino, and Cataratto.
In 1906, Arnaldo Strucchi published a key report on the optimal alcohol content for Vermouth being shipped abroad: never below 16% ABV, to ensure product stability in transit. That same principle would be enshrined in the first official regulation of Vermouth di Torino in 1935, signed by Mussolini and Vittorio Emanuele III. The decree mandated the use of 100% Italian wine, a minimum alcohol content of 15.5%, and a regulated production process – effectively a precursor to today’s quality standards.
Today, few producers have chosen to honor this legacy with such consistency and restraint. Scarpa is one of them – not just for its commitment to Piedmontese ingredients and traditional methods, but for a philosophy that sees time – not intensity – as Vermouth’s true defining element.
SCARPA AND VERMOUTH
Rooted in Piedmontese tradition, Scarpa began making Vermouth in the 1920s. From the very beginning – then as now – the winery paired its wine production with a broader reflection on transformation: wine not just as a finished product, but as a base for infusions, elixirs, and liqueurs.
Antonio Scarpa launched this path with his own recipe, later expanded by Mario Pesce and his father Pasquale. In the 1930s and 1940s, a dedicated Vermouth production division was created – active until the 1970s.
After a long pause, Vermouth has returned to Scarpa’s lineup. The historic recipes have been carefully reconstructed, updated only where needed, and reinterpreted with restraint – always in line with Scarpa’s stylistic identity.
From the outset, the goal was to recover the original spirit of Piedmontese Vermouth. To do so, Scarpa studied key historical texts from the late 19th and early 20th centuries – Antonio Rossi, Castoldi, Cotone – but above all Arnaldo Strucchi, who in 1907 described Vermouth as “a wine that is bittered, spiced, but never sharp, never excessive.” That vision inspired an aromatic bouquet built on complexity – no single note dominates, but all contribute to a harmonious, elegant, and continuous whole.
The process
Scarpa’s production method reflects that philosophy. It begins with a cold maceration of dried botanicals, left to rest for 20–30 days in a hydroalcoholic solution at 30% ABV.
The botanicals are sourced primarily from Pancalieri in the Po Valley – an area with centuries of cultivation of Artemisia (Roman, Pontic, and Gentile), chamomile, peppermint, lavender, and many of the herbs that form the core of Scarpa’s recipe.
After maceration, the extract – known as the concia – is blended with wine, which makes up 75% of the final product.
For the Rosso, color is provided exclusively by burnt sugar, caramelized at 160 °C – a historic technique revived after moving away from ammonium-based caramel (150D), which is more concentrated but less natural. Burnt sugar gives the Vermouth not only a brighter, more vivid hue but also a subtle flavor contribution – toasted notes and gentle sweetness.
The product is then cold-stabilized: chilled to –8 °C, then brought slowly back to zero over the course of a week. Once done outdoors in winter, this process allows tartaric crystals to settle and excess essential oils to rise, resulting in a clear, stable, and well-balanced Vermouth. It is then filtered – first using fossil flour – and bottled.
The three expressions of Scarpa Vermouth
All three Vermouths are classified as Vermouth di Torino, a designation that guarantees the use of Piedmontese wines and botanicals, and adherence to traditional practices.
Scarpa offers three styles – each with a distinct aromatic profile, structure, and balance of sweetness, botanicals, and alcohol:
Rosso – layered, generous, with warm spice and enveloping notes
Bianco – floral, citrusy, surprisingly persistent
Superiore Extra Dry – dry, incisive, with a vertical, herbaceous soul
