Noilly Prat () is a

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

vermouth Vermouth (, ) is an aromatized fortified wine, flavoured with various botanicals (roots, barks, flowers, seeds, herbs, and spices) and sometimes colored. The modern versions of the beverage were first produced in the mid- to late 18th centur ...

from France, owned by the Italian company

Martini & Rossi Martini & Rossi is an Italian multinational alcoholic beverage company primarily associated with the Martini brand of vermouth and also with sparkling wine (for example, Asti). It also produces the French vermouth, Noilly Prat. History The ...

, which is a subsidiary of

Bacardi Bacardi Limited (; ) is one of the largest privately held, family-owned spirits companies in the world. Originally known for its Bacardi brand of white rum, it now has a portfolio of more than 200 brands and labels. Founded in Cuba in 1862 an ...

. "White" Noilly Prat is the archetype of dry, straw-coloured French vermouth. Noilly Prat now makes Red and Ambre vermouths as well, introduced in the 1960s and 1980s, but they are less widely known. Noilly Prat Dry is 18% alcohol by volume. The Noilly Prat company is based in Marseillan, in the

Hérault Hérault (; oc, Erau, ) is a department of the region of Occitania, Southern France. Named after the Hérault River, its prefecture is Montpellier. It had a population of 1,175,623 in 2019.southern France. Joseph Noilly, a herbalist, developed the first formula in 1813, 50 years before the now archetypal vermouth,

Martini Martini may refer to: * Martini (cocktail) * Martini (vermouth), a brand of vermouth * Martini (surname), an Italian surname * Martini (automobile company), a Swiss automobile company * Automobiles Martini, a French manufacturer of racing cars * M ...

History

It has long been known that leaving

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

in a barrel alters its characteristics. Wine that was transported long distances in barrels and exposed to the weather became darker in colour and fuller-flavoured. It was to mimic this natural process that Joseph Noilly, in 1813, designed a process that made France's first vermouth. In 1855, his son Louis Noilly and son-in-law Claudius Prat set up the company that became Noilly Prat, moving the business to Marseillan where it remains to this day. The brand was acquired by its Italian competitor

in 1971, which was merged into the Bacardi-Martini family of brands in 1992.

Manufacturing process

The process used today is virtually unchanged since the 1850s. Noilly Prat is made exclusively from white grape varieties grown in the Marseillan area, principally ''

Picpoul de Pinet Piquepoul, Picpoul, or Picapoll is a variety (botany), variety of wine grape grown primarily in the Rhône (wine region), Rhone Valley and Languedoc wine, Languedoc regions of France as well as Catalonia, Spain. It exists both in dark-skinned ...

'' and '' Clairette''. These produce light, fruity wines which are matured in massive Canadian oak casks inside the original storerooms. The wine stays in these casks for 8 months, maturing and absorbing the flavour of the wood, before being transferred to smaller oak barrels which are taken outside and left for a year. Here they are exposed to the sun, wind, and low winter temperatures, while the wine is slowly changing. The result is a wine that is dry, full-bodied and amber coloured, similar to Madeira or

Sherry Sherry ( es, jerez ) is a fortified wine made from white grapes that are grown near the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versi ...

. During the year outside, 6 to 8% of the volume is lost to evaporation, the " angels' share". Brought back inside and left to rest for a few months, the wines are then blended together into oak casks. A small quantity of ''

Mistelle Fortified wine is a wine to which a distilled spirit, usually brandy, has been added. In the course of some centuries, winemakers have developed many different styles of fortified wine, including port, sherry, madeira, Marsala, Commanda ...

'' (grape juice and alcohol) is added to the wines in order to soften them, along with a dash of fruit essence to accentuate their flavour. In the oak casks, a process of '' maceration'', supposedly unique to Noilly Prat, takes place over a period of three weeks. A blend of some twenty herbs and spices is added by hand every day. The exact mix of herbs and spices that goes into Noilly Prat is a closely guarded secret, but includes

camomile Chamomile (American English) or camomile (British English; see spelling differences) ( or ) is the common name for several plants of the family Asteraceae. Two of the species, ''Matricaria recutita'' and ''Anthemis nobilis'', are commonly us ...

bitter orange Bitter orange, Seville orange, bigarade orange, or marmalade orange is the citrus tree ''Citrus'' × ''aurantium'' and its fruit. It is native to Southeast Asia and has been spread by humans to many parts of the world. It is probably a cross be ...

peel,

nutmeg Nutmeg is the seed or ground spice of several species of the genus ''Myristica''. ''Myristica fragrans'' (fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg) is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fruit: nutmeg, from its seed, an ...

, centaury (yellow gentian), coriander, and cloves. After a further six weeks, the finished product is ready for bottling and is shipped in tankers to

Beaucaire, Gard Beaucaire (; Occitan and Provençal: ''Bèucaire'' ) is a commune in the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. In 2018, it had a population of 15,718. Its inhabitants are known as ''Beaucairois'' or ''Beaucairoises' ...

, where it is bottled by

Variants

The vast bulk of Noilly Prat wine is the Original French Dry vermouth. It is enjoyed as a chilled aperitif and in martini cocktails. However, three special variants have been made: *Red Noilly Prat is made in the same way, but with the addition of 30 flavourings, which produce the rich red colour. It is not sold in France, except from the Noilly Prat shop in Marseillan, being produced for export, principally to the USA. *Ambre Noilly Prat is available for purchase from the Noilly Prat shop in Marseillan and specialised stores. *(Colourless) Extra Dry Noilly Prat is a less complex wine formulated for the American extra-dry martini cocktail. Extra Dry is only shipped to North America, where it was available from 1979 until 2009. It returned late in 2012. It has supplanted the French Dry, which is now unavailable in much of the United States.

Cocktails

Noilly Prat is often used in cocktails, the most common and well-known of which is probably the

martini Martini may refer to: * Martini (cocktail) * Martini (vermouth), a brand of vermouth * Martini (surname), an Italian surname * Martini (automobile company), a Swiss automobile company * Automobiles Martini, a French manufacturer of racing cars * M ...

, consisting of one part Noilly Prat to one or more parts gin or

vodka Vodka ( pl, wódka , russian: водка , sv, vodka ) is a clear distilled alcoholic beverage. Different varieties originated in Poland, Russia, and Sweden. Vodka is composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impuriti ...

, with a dash of

orange bitters Orange bitters is a form of bitters, a cocktail flavoring made from such ingredients as the peels of Seville oranges, cardamom, caraway seed, coriander, anise, and burnt sugar in an alcohol base. Orange bitters, which are not to be confused with ...

, twist of lemon, or olive garnish. Over the years, the American preference for "extra dry" martinis led to the switch from gin to vodka, and to drastically reducing the flavour and quantity of the vermouth employed. However, in 2009, the extra-dry Noilly recipe exported to the USA was replaced by the original dry formula used worldwide. The change in recipe was accompanied by a change in the bottle's design. Some recipes substituted a vermouth from instead of Noilly Prat for making martinis, which is said to be "every bit as good as, although not by any means identical to, the old Noilly". The Algonquin cocktail is named for the

Algonquin Hotel The Algonquin Hotel is a hotel at 59 West 44th Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States. The 181-room hotel, opened in 1902, was designed by architect Goldwin Starrett for the Puritan Realty Company. The hotel has hosted numer ...

, which is composed of

rye whiskey Rye whiskey can refer to two different, but related, types of whiskey: * American rye whiskey, which is similar to bourbon whiskey, but must be distilled from at least 51 percent rye grain * Canadian whisky, which is often referred to as (and ...

, Noilly Prat and

pineapple juice Pineapple juice is a liquid made from pressing the natural liquid from the pulp of the pineapple (a fruit from a tropical plant). Numerous pineapple varieties may be used to manufacture commercial pineapple juice, the most common of which are ...

Cooking with Noilly Prat

Noilly Prat is widely used in cooking, and extensively used for sauces, especially to accompany fish. In his BBC TV series ''French Odyssey'',

Rick Stein Rick may refer to: People *Rick (given name), a list of people with the given name *Alan Rick (born 1976), Brazilian politician, journalist, pastor and television personality *Johannes Rick (1869–1946), Austrian-born Brazilian priest and mycol ...

described Noilly Prat as a "true flavour from the

Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...

" and said, "I've done lots of experiments with white wines for fish sauces and I've come to the conclusion that Noilly Prat is the best. The Provençal herbs and spices used to flavour Noilly Prat seem to add flavour to the reduction."

Visits

The Noilly Prat cellars are open to the public from March to November, for a small charge. Tours explain the production process, and end with a tasting of the vermouths and cocktails made with them. Noilly Prat attracts more than 80,000 tourists every year.

Gallery

Image:Marseillan chaix Noilly.jpg, Noilly Prat production area in Marseillan File:Noilly-prat.jpg, Noilly Prat advertisement near Chartres, France

References

External links

* {{Official website, https://www.noillyprat.com/ Bacardi Vermouth French wine Products introduced in 1813 Food and drink companies established in 1855 1971 mergers and acquisitions French companies established in 1855