Gastropod looks at food through the lens of science and history.
Co-hosts Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley serve up a brand new episode every two weeks.
Co-hosts Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley serve up a brand new episode every two weeks.
Samantha Sheehan is the founder of Mommenpop, which makes aperitifs out of California citrus. Tim Colla is her collaborator and the winemaker at Saintsbury Winery, Mommenpop's home.
Theresa Levitt is a professor of history at Ole Miss and the author of Elixir: A Parisian Perfume House and the Quest for the Secret of Life. (Big thanks to Nicky's husband Geoff for giving her this book, which turned out to be the key to botanical booze—and more!)
Becky Sue Epstein is a wine and spirits expert and the author of several books on these drinks, including Strong Sweet and Dry: A Guide to Vermouth, Port, Sherry, Madeira and Marsala. You can also hear her on our episode about champagne.
Wormwood, a traditional ingredient in European vermouth, but barely found now in their American cousins—photographed at Quady Winery in California. (Photo by Nicola Twilley)
Along with his wife Laurel, Andy Quady is the co-founder of Quady Winery, based in Madera, California, which makes three kinds of craft vermouth.
Matteo Zed is the author of The Big Book of Amaro as well as the founder of The Court cocktail bar in Rome.
Erin Hines is the founder of Bitter Girl Bitters, which she makes with organic fruit, herbs, and other botanicals from her California backyard garden.
Flowers, fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices infusing into the next batch of bitters at Bitter Girl Bitters in California. (Photos by Nicola Twilley)
Adam Elan-Elmegirab is the operator of The House of Botanicals, Aberdeen, Scotland's oldest spirit business and the original home of Boker's Bitters, which Adam and his team painstakingly reconstructed. He is the author of Dr. Adam Elmegirab's Book of Bitters.
Jessica Moncada is the co-founder and owner of Alkali Rye, a fabulous beverage shop in Oakland, California.
This episode of Gastropod was supported by a generous grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for the Public Understanding of Science, Technology, and Economics. Check out the other books, movies, shows, podcasts, and more that they support here.
Still mystified by the world of vermouths? Check out this guide to the best vermouths, organized by style, from our friends at Punch!
You can learn more about the science of bitter foods and beverages, and whether or not they're actually good for us, in our episode The Bitter Truth—and more about the history of the cocktail in The Cocktail Hour!
Click here for a transcript of the show. Please note that the transcript is provided as a courtesy and may contain errors.