The best vermouth for a Negroni is a sweet red vermouth, and the best for a Martini is a dry one. Our first picks, and this is our view rather than a rule, are Dolin Rouge for a Negroni and Dolin Dry for a Martini. For an Australian bottle, choose Maidenii Sweet or Maidenii Dry.
Quick picks
- Dolin Vermouth Rouge: for a Negroni that stays bright and herbal rather than heavy.
- Dolin Vermouth Dry: for a Martini with citrus peel and a clean, gently bitter edge.
- Maidenii Sweet and Maidenii Dry: Australian bottles built with exactly these two drinks in mind.
| Drink | Our first pick | French or Italian alternative | Australian alternative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Negroni | Dolin Rouge, 16% | Bordiga Rosso, 18%, or Routin Red, 16.9% | Maidenii Sweet, 16%, or Three Foxes Ruby, 17% |
| Martini | Dolin Dry, 17.5% | Routin Dry, 16.9% | Maidenii Dry, 19% |
Forbes Australia reported in July 2026 a resurgence of the Martini, and said Sydney hospitality group Mucho Group moved its Bar Herbs from a Negroni focus to New York-style Martinis about six months after opening. For what vermouth actually is, read our guide to sweet, dry and blanc vermouth. This page is about which bottle to buy.
What is the best vermouth for a Negroni?
A red, sweet vermouth. The International Bartenders Association (IBA) recipe is 30 ml gin, 30 ml Campari and 30 ml sweet red vermouth, poured into a chilled old fashioned glass filled with ice, stirred gently and garnished with half an orange slice. Vermouth is a full third of the drink, so swapping the bottle changes the Negroni more than most people expect. Built with our gin and bitter suggestions below, one glass is about two standard drinks, so measure it.
Dolin Rouge
Our pick. Dolin's red is 16%, with more than thirty herbs and spices, and it describes stewed fruit, prune and walnut with a bittersweet finish. To our taste it is lighter on its feet than a richer Turin bottle, so the gin and the bitter both still show. That suits a hot Australian evening, and it is why we start here. Dolin itself names the Negroni and the Manhattan as its classic uses. Routin Red, also from Chambéry, is a good second French bottle: 24 botanicals, with part of the blend rested in oak.
Bordiga Rosso and Distilleria Negroni Rosso
If you want a rounder, more classically Italian Negroni, go here. Both are 18%, two points above Dolin. Bordiga Vermouth di Torino Rosso uses Piedmont's Nebbiolo with white wines, and Distilleria Negroni Rosso is made near Treviso from the estate's own red wine, with cinnamon and clove on the nose and a light tannic touch. To our taste, both make a darker drink than Dolin does.
Maidenii Sweet and Three Foxes Ruby
Maidenii Sweet is the Australian answer: Cabernet Sauvignon with strawberry gum, wattleseed, river mint and grapefruit zest, and Maidenii says it was designed with the classic Negroni in mind. Three Foxes Sunny Arvo Ruby runs richer to our taste, with sun-dried rosella, spiced cranberry, toasted wattleseed, clove and burnt orange peel. Either one is the start of an all-Australian Negroni.
What is the best vermouth for a Martini?
A dry, pale vermouth. Do not reach for blanc here: it is the sweeter white style and it changes the drink.
- Dolin Dry, 17.5%: fifteen herbs and spices macerated in Ugni Blanc wine. Dolin describes fresh citrus peel, cooling mint and almond over a gently bitter citrus backbone, and lists the Dry Martini among its cocktails. We find it gets out of the gin's way, which is what you want when the ratio is high in gin.
- Routin Dry, 16.9%: seventeen plants, flowers and spices with Jacquère and Sauvignon Blanc wine, and rosemary and juniper berries among the botanicals. A good one to try beside Dolin if you want the same town and a different hand.
- Maidenii Dry, 19%: Viognier with wormwood, lime leaf, strawberry gum and river mint. It reads more forward than Dolin to us, so it holds up at higher vermouth ratios. Maidenii designed it for the Martini at three parts gin to one of vermouth, with an orange twist.
Which gin?
The gin matters more than the vermouth in a dry Martini, simply because there is six times as much of it. We like Hayman's London Dry at 41.2% for a classic, Never Never Triple Juniper at 43% for an Australian bottle with oily, intense juniper, and Generous Gin at 44% for something French and floral. Our gin styles guide covers the rest.
How much vermouth goes in a Martini?
The IBA Dry Martini is 60 ml gin to 10 ml dry vermouth, stirred with ice and strained into a pre-chilled martini glass, with lemon oil expressed over the top or a green olive if requested. That is six to one. Plenty of people prefer more vermouth, and nobody will stop you. Here is how the ratio moves. Standard drinks are our sums using Hayman's and Dolin Dry.
| Style | Gin | Dry vermouth | Ratio | Standard drinks | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wet | 50 ml | 25 ml | 2:1 | 2.0 | Ours |
| Medium | 60 ml | 20 ml | 3:1 | 2.2 | Maidenii's ratio |
| Dry | 60 ml | 10 ml | 6:1 | 2.1 | IBA |
| Very dry | 60 ml | Rinse the glass and tip it out | Trace | 2.0 | Ours |
Every version is about two standard drinks, because the gin does most of the work. A Martini is a small glass of strong liquid, so treat it as one drink to enjoy slowly. For something longer, the summer cocktails guide has tall drinks for the heat.
Does the third bottle matter? Bitter for a Negroni
Yes. The IBA names Campari, and we carry two others that do the same job in the glass with a different accent.
- Distilleria Negroni Bitter, 25%: an infusion of orange and lemon peel, rhubarb, gentian, liquorice and quassia, with a long bitter aftertaste. It is the one we use in our Christmas cocktails Negroni, and the one in our sums above.
- Dolin Bitter de Chambéry, 16%: wine based, with bitter orange, gentian and cinchona bark, and named by Dolin for the Negroni, the Americano and the Spritz. At 16 per cent rather than 25, it brings a Negroni down to about 1.7 standard drinks, and it wants a bolder gin to stay in balance.
Our guide to bitters explains the wider family, and the full range is in our bitters collection.
How long does vermouth last once opened?
Keep it in the fridge and aim to finish it within about two months. Vermouth is wine, so air gets to work on it once the cap is off. The best-tested figure we found is from America's Test Kitchen, which found refrigerated open dry vermouth "remained suitable for sipping for two months", after which it turned medicinal and somewhat bitter. Wine Spectator says refrigeration keeps it fresh for "up to a few months". VinePair is stricter, at about two weeks for peak freshness and about a month at most.
So write the opening date on the bottle. If you only use a splash at a time, the 375 ml Maidenii Dry and Maidenii Sweet make more sense than a full bottle that will sit half used in the door.
What can you use instead of vermouth?
All of these change the drink, and we would rather tell you now than have you find out in the glass.
- For dry vermouth: dry sherry. Don Zoilo Fino, at 15%, is very dry, with flor yeast and almond. You lose the botanicals and gain a salty, nutty edge. More in our sherry guide.
- For sweet vermouth: Dubonnet Rouge. Dubonnet is a fortified red aperitif wine at 14.8% with a quinine edge, and it gives you a quinine-edged Negroni. It is best known in a Gin and Dubonnet.
- Skipping it. A Martini with no vermouth is a glass of very cold gin, and a Negroni without it is not really a Negroni. Our aperitifs range has other bottles to experiment with.
Who makes Dolin vermouth?
Dolin keeps coming up because it has been at this a long time. The house's own history says Joseph Chavasse created a recipe he called Vermouth de Chambéry in 1821, that his daughter Marie married Louis-Ferdinand Dolin in 1843, and that the Sevez family took over in 1919 and still runs it. Every Dolin vermouth is built on Ugni Blanc wine, and Dolin dates the white style to Savoie in 1881. VinePair describes it as widely used behind bars. Our vermouth guide has more on Chambéry and its status as a named style.
Vermouth FAQ
Can you use dry vermouth in a Negroni?
You can, but it will be sharper and thinner than the IBA drink, which calls for sweet red vermouth. If you want a pale Negroni, the White Negroni is its own recipe, created in 2001 with Suze and Lillet Blanc. Dolin Blanc is closer to that than a dry vermouth.
Is Dolin a good vermouth?
We think so, and it is our first pick for both drinks. It is light and precise rather than heavy, the house dates its vermouth to 1821, and Dolin lists the Negroni and Dry Martini among its cocktails. If you prefer a darker Negroni, an Italian bottle such as Bordiga may suit you better.
Does vermouth go off?
Yes, slowly. It is wine, so oxygen dulls it after opening, and the fresh herbal aromas fade first. It will not stay at its best on a shelf for a year. Keep it cold, write the date on it, and if it tastes flat or medicinal, use it for cooking instead.
Do you refrigerate vermouth?
Yes, once it is open. After opening it belongs in the fridge with the cap on tight, like any wine. America's Test Kitchen found dry vermouth stayed good for two months that way, against about a month in the pantry, and Wine Spectator suggests up to a few months.
What is the difference between sweet and blanc vermouth?
Sweet vermouth is usually red, spiced and bittersweet, and it belongs in a Negroni or Manhattan. Blanc is clear to pale gold and softer, with floral and herbal notes. Dolin describes its Blanc as more complex and sweeter than its Dry. Sip blanc over ice, and keep dry vermouth for the Martini.
Find your bottle
Buy one red and one dry, and you have the best vermouth for a Negroni and for a Martini covered. See the full vermouth range and our gin collection. We deliver to every Australian state and the ACT.