Vermouth · Explainer
What is an aperitif?
An aperitif is not a legal product category but a moment of use: the drink before the meal. In the shop that falls apart into four groups. Flavoured wine such as vermouth has 14.5 to 22 percent by volume, liqueur wine such as sherry and port falls under the wine regulation, distilled bitters and liqueurs start at 15 percent by volume, and alongside these are sparkling and alcohol-free variants.
In brief
The key figures
| Legal category aperitif | does not exist; the word denotes a moment |
|---|---|
| Aromatised wine | Regulation (EU) 251/2014, 14.5 to 22 percent by volume |
| Liqueur wine | Regulation (EU) 1308/2013 |
| Spirit drink | Regulation (EU) 2019/787, at least 15 percent by volume |
| Categories of spirits | 44 in Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2019/787 |
| Alcoholic drinks in the Netherlands | more than 0.5 percent by volume at twenty degrees |
| Age limit | 18 years |
Is aperitif a legal category?
No, there is no European or Dutch category aperitif; the word describes when you drink something and not what is in the bottle.
What is fixed are the categories that aperitif drinks fall under. Aromatised wine products are covered by Regulation (EU) 251/2014, liqueur wines by Regulation (EU) 1308/2013 and spirit drinks by Regulation (EU) 2019/787. Every bottle you serve as an aperitif belongs to one of these groups.
Which product groups are eligible?
Four groups fill the aperitif shelf: aromatised wine, liqueur wine, distilled bitters and liqueurs, and sparkling or alcohol-free drinks.
Aromatised wine includes vermouth and the bitter aperitif wines. Fortified wine includes sherry, port and madeira. Bitters and liqueurs fall under spirits, with a lower limit of 15 percent alcohol by volume. The fourth group consists of sparkling wine and alcohol-free versions of well-known aperitifs. Anyone looking for a bottle therefore actually chooses one of these four groups first and only then a flavour.
How much alcohol is in an aperitif?
The alcohol content varies widely: aromatised wine is between 14.5 and 22 percent by volume, distilled bitters and liqueurs start at 15 percent by volume.
Fortified wines lie in between; fino sherry is at 15 percent ABV and port usually at 19 to 22 percent ABV. Sparkling wine is a good deal lower. In the Netherlands a drink is called alcoholic as soon as it contains more than half a percent ABV at twenty degrees Celsius.
What do you choose without alcohol?
Alcohol-free aperitifs exist in the same flavour directions as the drinks with alcohol: bitter, herbal and dry.
Legally they are ordinary drinks, because below half a percent by volume a drink in the Netherlands does not fall under the Alcoholwet. Such a bottle therefore does carry a best-before date, whereas drinks from 10 percent by volume are exempt from it. On the shelf, alcohol-free vermouth and alcohol-free bitters stand next to their alcoholic counterparts.
How do you choose an aperitif for a group?
Choose a dry and a sweeter bottle and put an alcohol-free variant next to them, then you cover most preferences.
Een droge witte vermouth of een fino sherry vormt de droge kant, een rode vermouth of een witte port de zoetere. Reken op kleine maten, want een aperitief wordt in kleinere hoeveelheden geschonken dan een glas wijn. Wilt u het simpel houden, dan volstaat een fles met tonic of bruisend water erbij. NIX18.
From the shop in Bathmen
Which vermouths are available in Bathmen?
The shop in Bathmen has 32 vermouths from 14 different brands from 4 countries. Prices range from € 3.99 to € 37.99. The alcohol percentage ranges from 14.5% to 18%.
- Antica Formula Carpano 16.5% · 100 cl · Italy
- ANTICO Rosso 17% · 75 cl · Italy
- Belsazar White Vermouth 18% · 70 cl · Germany
- Carpano Punt E Mes 16% · 75 cl · Italy
- Cinzano Bianco 15% · 75 cl · Italy
- Cinzano Bottega 1757 Vermouth di Torino Extra Dry 18% · 100 cl · Italy
- Cinzano Bottega 1757 Vermouth di Torino Rosso 16% · 100 cl · Italy
- CINZANO Rosso 15% · 75 cl · Italy
- Cuisine Keukenflesje Vermouth Extra Dry 14.5% · 10 cl · Italy
- Del Professore Vermouth di Torino Rosso 18% · 75 cl · Italy
Related questions
What is vermouth?Which herbs are in vermouth?Which vermouth do you use for a dry martini?
Short answer
Short answers to related questions
- Is vermouth an aperitif?
- Yes. Vermouth is aromatised wine and one of the classic aperitif drinks, with 14.5 to 22 percent alcohol by volume.
- What is the difference between an aperitif and a digestif?
- The moment. An aperitif is served before the meal and a digestif after it; legally neither exists as a category.
- How many kinds of spirits does European legislation recognise?
- Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2019/787 has 44 categories, from jenever to bitter and liqueur.
- From what percentage is a drink called alcoholic?
- In the Netherlands from more than half a percent alcohol by volume at twenty degrees Celsius, according to the Alcoholwet.
The reasoning
Sources
- Verordening (EU) nr. 251/2014, gearomatiseerde wijnbouwproducten, European Union, EUR-Lex (accessed 2026-09-05)
- Verordening (EU) 2019/787, definitie en etikettering van gedistilleerde dranken, Europese Unie, EUR-Lex (accessed 2026-09-05)
- Verordening (EU) nr. 1308/2013, gemeenschappelijke ordening van de markten voor landbouwproducten, European Union, EUR-Lex (accessed 2026-09-05)
- Alcoholwet, Overheid.nl, wetten.overheid.nl (accessed 2026-09-05)
This page was written and checked by ’t Bockje Bathmen, wine and spirits shop at Brink 2 in Bathmen. Last updated on 7 September 2026.
Verkoop van alcohol onder de 18 jaar is verboden. NIX18.