Chinato, pronounced with a hard “ch”, is a vermouth-like fortified wine made in Italy. Essentially, a wine is slightly sweetened and then spices and herbs are macerated in the wine base to impart their flavors. One of the best chinatos that I have tasted is made by Mauro Vergano from a base of Moscato wine which provides a lovely base of aromatics that help contribute to the heady bouquet of this wine.
Recently, bartenders have begun to discover chinato and have been adding them to cocktails to add depth, complexity and interesting flavor nuances in their cocktails. Used correctly, a chinato based cocktail can truly be wonderful, but my favorite way to enjoy chinato is as an aperitif. In fact, I’m planning on offering this Vergano “Luli” Moscato Chinato as an aperitif option this year at Thanksgiving. At 16-18% alcohol, it packs a little bit of punch, but its slightly bitter notes offsetting the underlying sweetness make it a great foil for finger foods andappetizers at holiday parties. Additionally, one could easily make this a long drink by adding club soda to chinato to provide a sophisticated option that is both easy to produce and doesn’t require an experienced bartender.
But I digress, lets get back to talking Vergano “Luli” Moscato Chinato. Mauro Vergano was an 18th century Piedmontese chemist who made chinato as an amateur for many years. Eventually, Mauro went into business making chinato and this particular chinato is but one of the chinato’s made by Vergano. What is very interesting about the “Luli” chinato is that it is made from a white wine base. Chinato are traditionally made from red wines (especially Barolo) and this base wine is flavored with quinine, wormwood and orange peel among other things.
The result is a slightly sweet, slightly bitter aperitif with big cinnamon and orange flavors that play over the palate. There is a slightly grassy finish to this chinato and a pleasing end note of freshly ground cinnamon. I also get a bit of Meyer lemon preserves and some star anise notes.
Overall, I highly recommend Vergano “Luli” Moscato Chinato for those who haven’t tried it. If you are looking for a new experience in the world of wine or a new product to play with in cocktails, Vergano’s Moscato Chinato should be high on your list.
