Sharkbait’s Cocktail of the Week: Spritz!

How is everyone this week? I see the roller-coaster of suck that is 2020 is still going strong. Mrs. Sharkbait and I decided that we would head to our place on Cape Cod for a while. We usually rent it out for the summer, but our mid June to mid July tenant had to cancel, no surprise there. We figured we’re going to be staying put anyway, so might as well stay put someplace where we have a yard, and a little extra room in the house.

Since I’m not leaving my house for another week (abiding by state guidelines that ask visitors to the Cape to self-quarantine so our city germs don’t potentially overwhelm their limited hospitals) and I couldn’t pack my entire bar, my cocktailing options are limited.  I was able to bring a few staples down, which included sweet vermouth. Thanks to my brother-in-law who asked me if I needed anything while he was doing a booze run in New Hampshire (the wonderful land of cheap alcohol), I now have a comically over-sized bottle of sweet vermouth that needs to be used. I had no idea Martini Rossi made a 1.5L bottle so when he asked, “Do you want the bigger bottle,” I said yes, thinking he was referring to the 750ml variety. Nope. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. My normal use of sweet vermouth is for Manhattans. However, the only whiskey I have on hand is a peaty single malt, which is NOT getting mixed with anything, so that’s out.

With the weather slowly but surely improving in the northeast, I got to thinking about hot weather cocktails. It seemed like various kinds of spritzes were all the rage last summer, and having not tried one before, I was intrigued. Earlier this week I saw a recipe from the New York Times for a Vermouth Spritz which (for obvious reasons) uses vermouth as the base spirit. Seeing as now I have a metric fuckton of vermouth I decided to mix two of them up and garnish one with a lemon for me, and one with an olive for Mrs. Sharkbait.

Vermouth Spritz

2 oz. Sweet vermouth

4 oz. Soda water

Wedge of citrus or olives, for garnish (optional)

Fill a highball or large wine glass with ice. Add the vermouth and top up with the soda water. Garnish, if desired, with a fat wedge of lemon or orange or grapefruit, and/or a nice olive or two. Want something stronger? Add a slug of gin.

The nose is very light. I get a slight hint of the sweet vermouth coming in. I don’t detect much of the lemon however. I was a bit surprised the citrus scent didn’t take a more prominent role in the drink’s scent.

As for the taste? This is delicious. It is very light and refreshing. The ratio of the vermouth to the soda water is perfect. It creates a slightly sweet fizzy concoction that is super drinkable. The citrus adds a nice little touch at the end. As mentioned before, I used lemon but I can see an orange playing very well here. I’m not so sure about a lime, but I am willing to give that a try. Not only is it light in flavor, it is (relative to other cocktails) not strong at all. If you want something stronger, take the recipe’s advice and add a “slug” of gin. A slug being relative to how strong you want it. Because this was so good, and I feel it is in your best interest that I try to find an ideal amount of gin to add to this, I made another spritz and added a half ounce, as to not overpower the ratio.

I can easily picture myself taking down 2 or 3 of these in an afternoon sitting outside on the deck, and I highly recommend you find a spot in the sun, wherever you are, and do the same.

(Banner image found here)