Cinzano () is an Italian

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...

vermouth Vermouth (, ) is an Italian aromatized wine, aromatized, fortified wine, flavored with various Botany, botanicals (roots, Bark (botany), barks, flowers, seeds, Herb, herbs, and Spice, spices) and sometimes Food coloring, colored. The modern ve ...

, a brand owned since 1999 by Gruppo Campari.

History

Cinzano vermouths date back to 1757 and the

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

herbal shop of two brothers, Giovanni Giacomo and Carlo Stefano Cinzano, who created a new "vermouth rosso" (red vermouth) using "aromatic plants from the

Italian Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

in a till-secretrecipe combining 35 ingredients (including marjoram,

thyme Thyme () is a culinary herb consisting of the dried aerial parts of some members of the genus ''Thymus (plant), Thymus'' of flowering plants in the mint family Lamiaceae. Thymes are native to Eurasia and north Africa. Thymes have culinary, medici ...

, and

yarrow ''Achillea millefolium'', commonly known as yarrow () or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. Growing to tall, it is characterized by small whitish flowers, a tall stem of fernlike leaves, and a pungent odor. The plan ...

)". What became known as the "vermouth of Turin" proved popular with the bourgeoisie of Turin and, later, Casanova. Cinzano Bianco followed, based on a different combination of herbs that included artemisia ( wormwood),

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...

, cloves,

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. ''Citrus'' is nativ ...

and

gentian ''Gentiana'' () is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the gentian family ( Gentianaceae), the tribe Gentianeae, and the monophyletic subtribe Gentianinae. With over 300 species, it is considered a large genus. Gentians are notable for thei ...

; it was followed by an Extra Dry version. Exports began in the 1890s, to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

and the USA, among others. In

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1913, Cinzano was the first product to be advertised with a

neon sign In the signage industry, neon signs are electric signs lighted by long luminous gas-discharge tubes that contain rarefied neon or other gases. They are the most common use for neon lighting, which was first demonstrated in a modern form in Decem ...

on its roof. Cinzano remained a family-run business until 1985. Beginning that year, the Marone family, Turin industrialists, began to sell shares in the business, culminating in 1992 with an agreement to turn Cinzano International S.A. entirely over to International Distillers & Vintners, a wholly owned subsidiary of Grand Metropolitan.Case No IV/M.184 - Grand Metropolitan / Cinzano
from the website of the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...

At the time of its sale, Cinzano's share of the vermouth market in Europe was measured in the low single digits, sales that placed it a distant second to Martini. As a result of a 1997 merger, Grand Metropolitan became

Diageo Diageo plc ( ) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It is a major distributor of Scotch whisky and other spirits and operates from 132 sites around the world ...

; two years later, Diageo sold Cinzano to the privately held Gruppo Campari. The Cinzano cycling team had a central role in the film '' Breaking Away''.

Versions

It comes in four versions: * Cinzano Rosso,MotoGP 2004 Press Kit
(page 4), from the Gruppo Campari website which is amber-coloured; * Cinzano Bianco, which is white and drier than Rosso, yet still considered a sweet vermouth; * Cinzano Extra Dry, a

dry vermouth Vermouth (, ) is an Italian aromatized wine, aromatized, fortified wine, flavored with various Botany, botanicals (roots, Bark (botany), barks, flowers, seeds, Herb, herbs, and Spice, spices) and sometimes Food coloring, colored. The modern ve ...

; * Cinzano Rosé, the newest of the four, rosy-coloured with orange highlights

Advertising

Cinzano was well known in Britain for its humorous television advertisements featuring Leonard Rossiter and Joan Collins. One of these featured the pair on a plane journey, with Rossiter accidentally hitting the "recline" switch on Collins' chair, causing her to spill a glass of the drink over herself. It also featured as a Sterling Cooper-promoted brand on the series ''

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American historical drama, period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on cable network AMC (TV channel), AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, with seven seasons ...

''.

References

{{Portal bar, Italy, Companies Campari brands Vermouth Wineries of Italy Distilleries in Italy 1757 establishments in Italy Italian companies established in 1757 Food and drink companies established in 1757 Purveyors to the Imperial and Royal Court

History

Versions

Advertising

See also

References