Julia Child's Favorite Dry Vermouth Came From An Iconic Brand

You may not think about dry vermouth brands much, but if a famous lover of vermouth-heavy upside-down martinis like Julia Child had a favorite, it's worth knowing about. The upside-down martini, Child's iconic favorite cocktail, is a true inversion of what most people with strong opinions want from the drink. Martini fans will quibble over just how dry the cocktail should be, some argue that a 5:1 ratio of liquor to vermouth is the best, others claim 10:1 is ideal. The upside-down martini simply says, "let's make this refreshing," and goes with a 5:1 ratio of vermouth to gin (usually preferred over vodka in this drink). It's less James Bond and more kicking up your feet on the beach. With a vermouth-forward martini it's worth grabbing the best vermouth, and Child's preferred brand was Noilly Prat.

There are several iconic vermouths — Dolin or Martini & Rossi come to mind — but Noilly Prat can lay claim as the original dry vermouth. Noilly Prat is named after its founder, the Frenchman Joseph Noilly. He was a grocer who sold spirits, and in 1813 created the first recipe for dry white vermouth. The red sweet vermouth predated other styles of vermouth by several decades after being invented in Italy, but Noilly used local French grapes and a unique aging process to create the straw-colored, less sweet version that would go on to be known as "French" vermouth.

Noilly Prat didn't get its name until 1855 when Noilly went into business with his son-in-law Claude Prat, but not much about the vermouth has changed from the original 19th century production. Like many aperitifs and digestifs, vermouth is closely linked to the history of herbal medicines; Noilly Prat uses a secret mixture of 18 herbs and spices to flavor its dry vermouth, although it does reveal that ingredients like Tunisian bitter orange and elderflower are included. The other secret to Noilly Prat's unique flavor profile is how it's aged. It is a multistep process that involves several years of aging in oak barrels that had previously aged cognac or whiskey. Importantly the barrels are exposed to the elements of Noilly Prat's home in coastal Southern France, which is said to give the vermouth a saline quality from the sea air.

Noilly Prat wasthe brand included in the original martini recipe printed in 1911. It's not the only great vermouth brand for your martini, but its unique complexity makes it particularly good for an upside-down martini that relies on the vermouth's flavor. But you don't even need to bother with a martini if you don't want to. A good dry vermouth like Noilly Prat is excellent sipped by itself, and Child would certainly approve of you relaxing with such a refreshing tipple.