It is a fortified wine infused with herbs and spices, and considered medicinal. In Spain is made with wine, local herbs and spices, aged in barrels, and tends to be sweet. Healthy: the herbs in it help with digestion, improve circulation, helps reduce fluids. It has plenty of antioxidants which helps with your heart, but always drink in moderation.

Sage is one of the best-known aromatic plants in the Mediterranean. The beneficial properties of this herb have been recognised since ancient times and the Latin name for this plant species commonly known as sage is Salvia Officinalis, belonging to the Lamiaceae family.

Salvia comes from the Latin verb salvare (to save or preserve) and the adjective salvus (safe and sound). Pliny the Elder, Roman imperial procurator from the 1st century AD, in his Natural History, already described salvia in detail as well as how it can be used for cleansing. In fact, it seems that in the Mediterranean basin, sage had already been used long before that, since it is thought that the ancient Egyptians would have used it to treat abdominal diseases, asthma, dental pain and insect stings.

Throughout history the herb has been the protagonist in a series of proverbs that highlighted its healing properties. It has appeared in botanical treatises and historical texts. For example, in the Carolingian Empire’s Capitulare de Villis, a legislative act from the late 8th century, salvia is listed as one of 73 plants to be planted in royal gardens. During the Middle Ages it was a highly valued plant that was grown in the gardens of the monasteries of Europe.

The 16th-century German physician and botanist Hieronymus Bock also extolled the virtues of sage wine, or the herb cooked in wine, and sage water as a remedy for different parts of the body. According to this doctor, sage eliminated poison, calmed coughs, warmed the liver and the womb, relieved illnesses caused by cold and healed ulcers, wounds, sores and bites.

The astringent properties of sage and its ability to tighten mucous tissues and tone them make it a highly valued plant in herbalism for relieving sore throats and mouth complaints. Thus, sage is a common ingredient in toothpastes and mouthwashes.

Its anti-inflammatory properties are beneficial in relieving menstrual pain and even in combatting excessive sweating and hot flashes. Sage is a good antiseptic for treating skin problems and healing wounds and sores. Sage essential oil can also be used for massage. In addition, recent studies have also shown that sage, taken as an infusion, or in pills or tinctures, improves cognitive function and levels cholesterol and diabetes markers thanks to its antioxidant properties.

This plant is also suitable for improving digestion and relieving gas, either by taking it as an infusion or as an aromatic herb to season dishes. A combination of bitter and spicy flavours give sage a special touch as a condiment, especially in heavy meat dishes. It is a versatile complement that can be added to many foods.

Gentian is an alpine plant native to the mountains of central and southern Europe. It has been used since ancient times for its medicinal properties as well as to flavour drinks. Gentian root has been used as a bitter herb in the treatment of digestive complaints and liver disease. It has also been used to stimulate the appetite and even as an antidote to poisons. In addition, it helps cleanse the blood, strengthens the immune system and is used in treatments to remove skin blemishes.

One of its chemical components, amarogentin, is used scientifically as a basic standard for measuring bitterness because it is one of the most bitter natural substances known. This characteristic makes the plant highly regarded in the alcoholic beverage industry.

Gentian is without doubt the most important plant in the mixture of botanicals and alcohol that make up Angostura Bitters, a bitter preparation that is used as a condiment in cocktails and food. The concoction dates back to the nineteenth century, when the German, Johan Gottlieb Siegert, was working as Simón de Bolívar’s doctor during his fight for Venezuelan independence. Siegert devised it as a remedy for nausea in cholera patients and sailors and it became the first bitters drink in history. For many years, it was considered a medicine and now it is an essential ingredient in mixology. Gentian liqueur is currently made in several regions of Europe where it is taken as a digestive.

Gentian owes its name to King Gentius of Iliria, who lived during the second century BC and whose people were of Indo-European origin living on the Balkan peninsula. Gentius was defeated by the Romans, who were, at the time, extending their influence along the shores of the Mediterranean. It was Pliny the Elder, a writer and Roman military man from the first century AD, who attributed to Gentius the discovery of the curative value of this very bitter plant and that is why it bears his name.

It is cinchona, the bark of the quinine tree, which gives these vermouths their long aftertaste on the palate and persistence on the nose.

Chinchona, not widely used in vermouth making, is what gives our Dorado Amargo Suave its special character. There are different species of cinchona and we use the bark of the Cinchona Calisaya (also called Cinchona Legderiana). We infuse it in distilled wine alcohol along with wormwood and other botanicals, such as gentian, which enhance and balance the bitter flavours.

Originally from South America, this is a botanical that has travelled the world to fight malaria

The quinine tree is native to South America and its bark contains an alkaloid, also called quinine, which has digestive, antipyretic, antimalarial and analgesic properties. Cinchona has been used for centuries to treat malaria. In fact, the medicinal properties of cinchona as an agent to bring down fever have been known since ancient times in the areas that now make up Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.

Apparently, there are several legends that illustrate how pre-Columbian cultures discovered its healing properties. In these legends someone is miraculously cured having drunk water which happened to contain cinchona bark. One of the species of the quinine tree is even represented in the coat of arms of Peru.

Chinchona first came to Europe in the 17th century through Jesuit missionaries who knew of its use in Peru as a medicine to combat malaria. Hence, it began to be imported and commercialized. Cinchona, the scientific name, originates from the 18th century, when Swedish botanist Carlos Linnaeus gave it a classification. According to one legend, Francisca Enríquez de Rivera, Countess of Chinchón and Viceroy of Peru fell ill in Lima with serious fevers. She recovered thanks to cinchona powder. Cinchona Calisaya or Legderiana, was first described at the end of the 18th century. In English it was given the common name of quinine or Peruvian bark.

In the 19th century, two French pharmacists succeeded in isolating quinine from cinchona bark and progress was made in the production of antimalarial drugs. Due to the multiple properties of this substance, some European countries planted quinine trees in their Asian colonies.

Cinchona bark powders were taken dissolved in water or wine. Sugar could be added to balance the bitter taste which is how tonic water came into being. Gin & Tonic also came about thanks to the healing properties of quinine. Whilst out in their colonies in Asia, the British had to take quinine to ward off malaria. They mixed it with soda water, sugar and gin. This also gave rise to quinine wines and brandies as well as other delicious beverages drunk as aperitifs or to whet the appetite.

In the tasting notes for red vermouths, there is one botanical that keeps coming up, clove or aromatic clove (Eugenia caryophyllata). This highly aromatic botanical, which tastes very slightly spicy and has a sweet aftertaste .

Clove is an intensely fragrant spice, perhaps one of the most aromatic in the world. It comes originally from the Moluccas Islands, also known as the Spice Islands, although today it is also grown in other places such as India, Sri Lanka, Madagascar and French Guyana. In the 3rd century BC clove was already highly valued in China for its aromatic properties although it was possibly not brought to Europe until the 5th century. It began to be routinely imported to the West in the eighteenth century and became popular over the following centuries, with the help of the Venetians and the Portuguese.

The clove tree can grow to up to between ten and twenty metres. The spice is obtained by harvesting the buds before they blossom into flowers, leaving them to dry for approximately three days. You know they are ready when they start to look like rusty nails.

The essential oil of clove contains eugenol, an element that has strong therapeutic properties, as an anti-inflammatory, as a painkiller and for reducing fever. Caryophyllene, another substance present in clove, is a strong antioxidant that can help prevent degenerative diseases. Clove is also a powerful antibiotic which attacks germs and yeast – and a stimulant for the nervous system, helping to reduce fatigue and improve cognitive function and memory. It is also very helpful in gastric atony and is a good aid in relieving indigestion.

Clove is often used mixed with other aromatic spices in different savoury dishes and sauces. It is best friend to the pulse family since it makes for improved digestion. In baking, it is used in biscuits and cakes for just the same reason that we use it in vermouth, its fantastic aroma and taste.

Wormwood or Artemisia, in Latin, is the quintessential herb, without which a vermouth quite simply, isn’t a vermouth. The base formula for any drink calling itself vermouth must be 75% wine and wormwood, one of the botanicals used. In fact, the world’s first vermouth, commonly thought to have sprung from the creative skills of Hippocrates, was a maceration in wine of wormwood and dictamnus leaves from Crete. The plant is so important to this amazing drink that it has ended up with the herb as its name. Wermut in German and from there, vermouth, vermut and so on.

The wormwood plant, a woody-stemmed perennial, grows in the warmer parts of Asia, Europe and northern Africa on arid, chalky land. It can grow as tall as one metre and flowers from July to September. It contains, among other ingredients, potassium, absinthe and potassium nitrate which open the appetite and aid digestion. For this reason, wormwood has been used from time in memoriam to alleviate stomach pain and as a natural stomach cleanser.

However, what makes wormwood the botanical par excellence are its powerful bitter properties which balance, better than any other, the sweetness of the mistela and the wine.

Now we’d like to tell you something about the plants and roots that have a hand in improving poor circulation.

During summer here in Spain and anywhere in the world where it gets hot, blood circulation can slow down and there is an increased risk of fluid retention. In addition to the better-known remedies such as: drinking plenty of water, exercising, putting our feet up and reducing salt intake, there are other ways of combating fluid retention and poor circulation.

Vermouth formulas contain a wide variety of botanicals that are beneficial to our health. In addition to those which facilitate digestion, there are also herbs that improve circulation of the blood and help to reduce fluids.

Boldo, juniper, linden, ginger and dandelion are some of the plants used in vermouth making and they all have active ingredients that are very interesting for our health:

Boldo: the leaves are used for their alkaloid, flavonoid and eucalyptol content (so, naturally occurring organic compounds and phytonutrients). The plant is also used for its diuretic properties and as an effective cholagogue (that’s an agent which increases the flow of bile) in bile-duct dysfunction.

Juniper: the scent of its berries is highly aromatic and balsamic. The leaves, fruit and the bark of the plant are all used, principally for: reducing fluid retention, alleviating urine infections and diabetes, eliminating uric acid and as a moderate blood-pressure reducer.

Linden: the flowers and branch bark are used in a range of treatments. The flowers have hepato- or liver-protecting and anti-spasmodic properties and are gentle sedatives. They also help lower blood pressure and reduce digestive spasms.

Ginger: one of the tubercles with most curative properties on the planet. To mention just of few of them, it improves circulation, facilitates digestion and acts as an anti-inflammatory and an anaesthetic.

Dandelion: is used as a choleretic or cholagogue and dissolves and eliminates gallstones. It’s also an excellent diuretic, can be used to alleviate constipation, arteriosclerosis, rheumatism and gout.

The best way of preparing these medicinal herbs and plants in order to ensure we get the most from them in terms of curative properties, is infusion.

So if you want to have an alcoholic drink, in moderation, which not only tastes fantastic but it also helps your health, please try our Spanish vermouth: Cubero awarded 91 by international experts.

Use code VM23 when ordering and you will have 20% discount

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