Introducing Naturi – the bloody best vermouth I’ve tried

It’s easy to look at a wall of half-opened, oxidised bottles of Cinzano on a bar room shelf and write off vermouth as a drink altogether. So often, it feels like a bit player – the martini filler, or the other ingredient in a Manhattan (for whoever drinks Manhattans).

The sublime new Naturi range is not that.

These proudly Australian vermouths landed on my doorstep indirectly, and I didn’t know what to expect. We’ve seen a swell of premium Australian vermouth lob up recently from the likes of Regal Rouge & Madenii, but I’ve not sat there with a bottle of any of them (especially not neat). So this was different. Would I immediately start thinking about dirty vodka martinis?

Yes, yes, I would…

Crafted by Richard Gunner, the Adelaide butcher/farmer/food legend, these three fortified wines (because that’s what vermouth is, which is easy to forget) have a feel you see in the best ‘non-table’ wines. You know, like old Muscat, or a masterfully made grand sparkling with layers and quirks of texture and flavour beyond just grape juice.

So, how do they taste?

Naturi Dirty Dry Vermouth

Made from a base of Australian white wine, local aged brandy and a mix of botanicals, including beach succulents, seaweed, lemon myrtle and a plus ingredient. Martinis are clearly the go here, with a recipe on the back for an Aussie martini using Seven Seasons Green Ant Gin.

You want it dirty? This pours a cloudy, golden yellow. Excellent! There’s a real riot of aromatics here o mint, green olives, fresh herbs, honey, chamomile and butterscotch with a layer underneath of pear and fruit salad ripe grapes. The texture is what drags you in as it bounces from layer to layer with the aromas of the garden (mint), the barrel hall (that butterscotch edge), the tea room (chamomile tea) and then this fullness through the middle. Importantly, it pulls up fresh, just a little bitter, but rich enough and lively enough to just drink on its own. Wow. Just wow. 5 stars. 19%, $40 for 750ml.

Naturi Per Spritz

For spritz, obvs, with more native botanicals, including rosella and native citrus plus an array of fruits. Excellent! I couldn’t pick the grape here but it pours pinkish.

Cloudy, coppery red-orange cloured – it could be a lo-fi Grenache or a cloudy, modern natural rosé. It smells juicy, too – peach, apricot, hops, strawberry. Cloudy, juicy, and driven by fruit salad flavours, a little herbs, plus a big hit of English Breakfast Tea. The tea comparison vibe is perfect, as I can imagine a peach and strawberry iced tea through the mid-palate. But then the bitterness kicks in, with bitter tea tannins that head towards a very firm, bitters-like chewiness that wrestles with the juicy mid-palate in an intriguing match. Forget Aperol or Campari; this layered, fresh, beguiling Amaro-meets vermouth is much more interesting. 5 stars. 19%, $40 for 750ml.

Naturi Rosso

Despite what the back label says, skip the Manhattan and just drink with a dash of fruit juice, I think. Red wine is clearly the base, with a basket full of botanicals, fennel and nutmeg.

Pours a deep red – I’m picking Shiraz as the base, but the colour is more purple-red, like Nero or a GSM blend (and clearly South Australian). The first notes are rich red plush plummy fruit, nutmeg, chocolate and plum. Then a palate of alternating layers – bright red fruit, Earl Grey, prunes, stonefruit, then a Shiraz-like plush and chocolatey red plum middle, before the black bitters step in on the finish. The nutmeg-meets-luscious-red-wine mode here is just a great contrast, and it’s sweet enough to counter the mouth-compacting bitterness. Technically, this is a sweet Vermouth, but the herbal/savoury vs lavish fruit balance makes it much more than a sweet red thing. What a drink. 5 stars. 19%, $40 for 750ml.