It’s a pleasure to meet up with friends at midday for
tapas and conversation, a glass of vermouth in hand. And now it’s easy to do with an ever-growing number of
bars and taverns that want to make this tradition the best part of the day.
Hippocrates is said to be the inventor of vermouth, back in the year 460 BC, one of the best periods for alcoholic beverages in human history. This wise man managed to concoct his brew by crushing various flowers – including wormwood, the same plant used in making
absinthe – in wine. Later, in the Middle Ages, one of the worst periods for everything, it was called herbal wine. Then, in the 18th century, Piedmontese masters perfected the methodology and recipe, approximating the drink consumed today. It turned out that one of those clever Italians ended up on Catalan soil. His name was Flaminio Mezzalama and he brought with him the vermouth made by Martini & Rossi. The success was such that a few years later there were already illegal shops appearing in the city where they sold forged bottles of the brand.
The first half of the previous century was the era of splendour for vermouth, and the gastronomc ritual developed to go with it, which gave a local character to a beverage that was soon being produced in places like El Maresme and Reus. But by the end of the ’80s, when the city was fully given over to the creed of ‘modernity or death’, vermouth and the
wine bars devoted to its consumption became a nostalgic refuge for apostates in the religion of progress. But with the arrival of the ’90s, the old was suddenly called ‘vintage’, and everyone succumbed to the wonders of recycling and attitudes of ironic nostalgia.
Now in the new century, Barcelona is showing increasing symptoms of fatigue with its image as a designed, modern and strenuously cosmopolitan place. And with that we arrive at the first decade of the 21st century, when modernity is suffering some of its worst press. So, it’s not surprising that wine bars and the vermouth they serve are once again an essential part of leisurely dining, especially for part of a new generation that grew up with the overly designed and, as a result, has come to appreciate the more authentic. Now it’s not only the elders who are keeping the spirit of the vermouth tradition alive; the young have also been known to partake of the old ways with a care rarely seen before. Wine bars in danger of closing have returned as meeting points for a clientele showing their identity cards for the first time. Dotted all around the city are
smaller cellars with the spirit of the European
coffeehouse,
traditional cuisine and vermouth on tap, spaces that host the vermouth-concert, live alternative rock accompanied by canned muscles.... It’s the perfect storm. The ritual is clearly as much a part of the appeal as the drink itself. Few cultural recycling exercises have been as successful as that of vermouth in Barcelona. Here’s a guide to where to get yours.
