English vermouth has come a long way since the days when a bartender's only option was a dusty Italian bottle opened once a fortnight and left to oxidise in the fridge. Two British producers are now making some of the most cited bottles in UK drinks circles: Asterley Bros SCHOFIELD'S and Sacred English Dry Vermouth.
We have watched both bottles appear on back bars across London. They share a category, a postcode of origin (both London-founded), and an ambition to give vermouth a proper seat at the bar. But they take genuinely different paths, in botanicals, in strength, and in the serve they invite you into.
This is a straight comparison. We look at what each bottle actually contains, where each one wins, and which one belongs in your hand when you reach for the gin next.
Two approaches to English vermouth
Sacred Spirits launched its vermouth range from Highgate, North London, in collaboration with Alessandro Palazzi of Dukes Bar, and built it around the Martini.
Asterley Bros released SCHOFIELD'S as a collaboration with the Schofield brothers, bartenders Joe and Daniel Schofield, which gave the bottle a distinct identity of its own. It took Gold at the World Vermouth Awards 2021 and 2 stars at Great Taste 2020. Where Sacred entered through the Martini bar, SCHOFIELD'S arrived as an English dry vermouth built for a broader serve range: Martini, spritz, long refreshing serves. It uses 28 botanicals, and the profile leans aromatic and floral rather than bitterly precise.
Both are English. Both are correct answers to a category that once required an Italian passport to play in. The differences are in the detail.
Botanical and method breakdown
Sacred English Dry Vermouth is built on a base of English wine from Three Choirs vineyard in Gloucestershire. The botanical run includes wormwood, thyme, cloves, and citrus, a tighter, more classically Mediterranean set. The ABV sits at 21.8%, giving the bottle some structural weight in a stirred cocktail. The format is 50cl.
SCHOFIELD'S uses a blend of English white wines as its base and 28 botanicals. The list includes rose, camomile, jasmine, gentian, cardamom, lime leaves, rosemary, and elderflower alongside more expected bittering agents like wormwood, cinchona, and milk thistle. The profile is aromatic, floral, and deliberately complex. The bottle is also 500ml, and the ABV is 16%, noticeably lighter than Sacred's.
The contrast in botanical philosophy is real. Sacred concentrated its development around a tight set of premium ingredients with a Martini-specific application in mind. Asterley leant into the floral English character that the Schofield collaboration brought to the brief. Neither approach is superior. They are answering slightly different questions about what English vermouth can taste like.
Price and format comparison
The two bottles sit at different price points and strengths, which matters when you are deciding what to put on your back bar or what to keep at home.
| Asterley Bros SCHOFIELD'S | Sacred English Dry Vermouth | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £26.95 | £20.95 |
| Format | 500ml | 50cl (500ml) |
| ABV | 16% | 21.8% |
| Base | English white wine blend | English wine from Three Choirs, Gloucestershire |
| Botanicals | 28, published in full | Wormwood, thyme, cloves, citrus (reported) |
| Key differentiation | Floral, aromatic, wide botanical range; Gold, World Vermouth Awards 2021; 2 stars, Great Taste 2020 | Cocktail-native, Palazzi collaboration, high ABV |
| Best suited to | Martini, spritz and long serves | Stirred, Martini-led serves |
Both come in 500ml bottles, and on price per millilitre Sacred works out cheaper, at about £0.042/ml against £0.054/ml for SCHOFIELD'S. Sacred's higher alcohol helps it hold its own against a full-proof gin in a stirred cocktail; SCHOFIELD'S lighter 16% makes it more forgiving when lengthened with soda in a spritz.
Where Sacred English Dry Vermouth has the edge
Sacred's Martini credentials come from its collaboration with Alessandro Palazzi of Dukes Bar.
For a back bar built around the Martini, Sacred's higher ABV and tighter botanical structure make a case. At £20.95 for 50cl, it is also cheaper per millilitre.
Where Asterley Bros SCHOFIELD'S makes its case
SCHOFIELD'S has the broader serve range, a World Vermouth Awards Gold (2021) and 2 stars at Great Taste 2020. Its 28 botanicals, including rose, camomile, jasmine, gentian, cardamom and lime leaf, signal a different ambition from a straightforward cocktail vermouth. The floral, aromatic profile makes SCHOFIELD'S genuinely interesting in a spritz or a long serve where you want botanical complexity to carry the drink rather than just support the gin.
The lighter ABV (16%) makes it more versatile for long drinks and spritz serves where you want to taste the vermouth without it fighting the soda.
The Schofield brothers collaboration also gives the bottle a narrative anchor, a creative partnership that matters to drinks people who follow the brand. Asterley's transparency ethos, the brand makes a point of publishing what is in its bottles, is also a differentiator in a category where most producers guard their recipes. You can read the full botanical list for SCHOFIELD'S on Asterley Bros' product page.
SCHOFIELD'S is available direct from Asterley Bros and from premium stockists including Fortnum & Mason and Harvey Nichols.
A dry Negroni for the comparison
A classic Negroni uses sweet vermouth (ours is ESTATE). Swap in a dry vermouth and you get a sharper, drier Negroni that shows the difference between these two bottles clearly. Made with Sacred, it is more bitter, more alcoholic and more austere, with the wormwood leading throughout. Made with SCHOFIELD'S, it is softer and more floral, with more botanical complexity against the bitter.
For a side-by-side comparison session, try:
50ml London Dry Gin 25ml Sacred English Dry Vermouth or Asterley Bros SCHOFIELD'S 25ml red bitter (we use NEGRONI JUICE)
Stir over large ice. Strain into a rocks glass over a large ice cube. Express orange peel.
Make both. Note which one you reach for the next evening. That answer is the one that belongs on your bar.
FAQ
Is Sacred Vermouth better than Asterley Bros? For a floral, aromatic dry vermouth that works across Martinis, spritzes and long serves, SCHOFIELD'S is our pick: Gold at the World Vermouth Awards 2021 and 2 stars at Great Taste 2020. Sacred is higher in alcohol (21.8% against 16%), more classically bitter and built around the Martini.
What's the difference between SCHOFIELD'S and Sacred English Dry Vermouth? The most practical difference is ABV (21.8% Sacred versus 16% SCHOFIELD'S) and botanical profile. Sacred is tighter, more classically bitter, and Martini-native. SCHOFIELD'S is wider, more aromatic, and suited to Martini, spritz, and longer serves.
Which one should I use for a Negroni? A classic Negroni uses a sweet vermouth, so for that reach for ESTATE, our English sweet vermouth. In a drier Negroni variation, SCHOFIELD'S gives an aromatic, softer-edged drink; Sacred a more bitter, higher-alcohol one.
Where can I buy SCHOFIELD'S? Direct from asterleybros.com, and from premium stockists including Fortnum & Mason and Harvey Nichols.
How should I store English vermouth? Refrigerate after opening and use within a few weeks: both have wine bases and will oxidise faster than spirits. Vermouth does not improve with age once open. More on how to store vermouth.
Does English vermouth actually taste different from Italian vermouth? In general, English vermouth producers have more freedom to experiment with botanicals outside the Italian aperitivo tradition. Sacred leans into the classic bittering herbs with a high-ABV, Martini-specific intent. Asterley's approach, particularly in SCHOFIELD'S, leans on floral and aromatic botanicals (rose, camomile, jasmine) that are less common in Italian vermouth. The result is a genuinely different flavour profile rather than a mere copy.
Ready to try an English vermouth that is made in South London, listed at some of the UK's best bars, and designed to work in everything from a Martini to a spritz?