Savoie Faire

It snowed this week and it’s ski season so it seemed only right to talk about the Savoie region of France.

If you don’t know it, Savoie is in Southeastern France, in the French Alps. It’s home to Albertville which hosted the Winter Olympics in 1992. Savoie is probably best known for its ski mountains (Val-d’Isère, Tignes, Courchevel…) and its cheese (Tomme de Savoie, Emmental, Reblochon, Raclette, Beaufort…). There are also some really interesting wines in Savoie, including Dolin, my favorite dry vermouth.

Some cool things to know about Dolin and vermouth:

-Vermouth is a fortified wine flavored with herbs.
(Fortified wines have more spirits (alcohol) added to them.)

-Dolin has been making vermouth in Chambéry, Savoie since 1821 and is the last independent producer of Vermouth de Chambéry. Their vermouth includes 30+ Alpine herbs.

-Most people know vermouth as an ingredient in cocktails like gin or vodka martinis, but it’s also awesome on its own. The French love it as an apéritif (or an “apéro”) which is a pre-meal drink or cocktail usually served with some snacks. Vermouth is especially nice with raw bar and goat cheese.

-Vermouth is a great substitute for white wine when you’re cooking. It’s more flavorful and is really nice in fish sauces.

-Store your vermouth in the fridge once it’s open it to keep it fresh. It’ll last up to three months, but think of it this way: vermouth is fresh enough to drink straight up in the first month; it will be decent in a mixed drink for two months; you can still cook with it in the third month.

Chin!