At Asterley Bros we make English vermouth, amaro and aperitivo in small batches in South London. Alongside our own range, we develop and produce vermouth for other brands, both white-label and fully bespoke. This is the guide we give people who come to us wanting to launch a vermouth of their own.
There are two main routes: white-label for a lower-cost, faster start, or bespoke for full control over the liquid. Either way, the job is to make four decisions early: route, style, pack and compliance. Get those right at the start and you avoid wasted time, label rework and batch-cost surprises. Here is the short version.
- White-label means you start from a vermouth we have already made and add your own brand.
- Bespoke means we build the liquid around your brief, with trial batches and sign-off.
- Style before pack: Dry, Bianco and Rosso suit different serves, so choose the style first.
- Format follows channel: 50cl, 75cl and 37.5cl each fit different sales channels and price points.
- Compliance early: sort sulphite labelling, duty roles and artwork sign-off before bottling.
- Small runs are possible, but minimum quantities and lead times depend on the product, so plan early.
We treat the whole thing as a brief, not just a bottle: what style are you making, who is it for, what should it cost, and when does it need to land? If that is the kind of help you want, our bespoke and white-label service is built for exactly this.
Choose your route: white-label or bespoke
This comes down to control, speed and cost, and how much of the liquid you want to be truly yours. We offer both, and we will tell you honestly which one fits your plan.
White-label
With white-label you start from a vermouth we have already made and signed off, and step in at the branding stage, with some say over the pack and small tweaks to the liquid. The base wine and fortification are set, and packaging means standard bottle and closure options with your own label. It is the fastest route to market, and it works well for a bar house pour, a retailer own-label test, or any release where speed matters more than a one-off recipe.
Bespoke: where we do our best work
Bespoke is a signature vermouth built from the ground up, not a relabelled stock liquid, and it is the work we most enjoy. We start from your brief and shape the liquid with you: base wine, botanical recipe and fortification. We build on English estate wines (our own ESTATE vermouth is made with English Pinot Noir), paired with a botanical mix drawn from herbs, spices and fruits, then move through repeat trial batches and refinements to a pilot batch you approve before we scale up. Our own SCHOFIELD'S English Dry Vermouth came out of exactly this kind of collaboration: we made it with the Schofield brothers, Joe and Daniel, both bartenders, and it pairs a floral nose with a clean citrus finish. Bespoke also opens up more packaging freedom, including custom bottle shapes.
How to decide
Three questions usually settle it: how soon do you need to launch, how much can you spend on development, and does the liquid need to belong only to your brand? If your deadline is tight, white-label gets you there faster. If your brand story rests on owning the liquid itself, bespoke is the route, and it is the one we would guide you through end to end.
| Factor | White-label | Bespoke |
|---|---|---|
| Recipe control | Minor tweaks to an existing base | Full control of base wine, botanicals and finish |
| Speed to market | Fast, uses an approved liquid | Slower, allows bench samples, pilot batches and scale-up |
| Cost profile | Lower upfront | Higher upfront, longer development |
| Packaging | Standard bottle and closure, custom label | More freedom, including custom formats |
| Exclusivity | Existing liquid under your brand | A recipe developed for you alone |
| Best for | House pour, retailer test | Premium line, signature hospitality programme |
Build the liquid and the pack
Style, base wine and botanicals
Start with the style brief and the serve. Is it Italian, French or English in style, and is it for cocktails, an aperitif over ice, or a house pour? That shapes the balance of sweetness, bitterness and botanical intensity. Then the base wine: English estate wines give the liquid a clear British identity and back a "made in Britain" story, which is where our own vermouths sit; imported bases are more cost-efficient when origin matters less. The botanicals follow the base and the style. English-style vermouths lean into garden and hedgerow ingredients like elderflower, lavender and rosemary; more classic profiles use warming Mediterranean spices, citrus and vanilla. Our ESTATE vermouth, for reference, carries 34 botanicals. On a bespoke project we fine-tune sweetness, bitterness and body over iterative tastings until the liquid matches your brief.
Bottle, closure, label and case size
Once the recipe is locked, the pack needs to fit the channel and the price point. In the UK, 50cl bottles suit premium craft positioning, 75cl works for standard bar and retail, and 37.5cl fits gifting or entry-level retail. A natural cork gives a more premium feel; labels must carry ABV and volume at a minimum and meet UK rules. Small-batch producers often pack in cases of six. Custom glass is possible on bespoke projects but adds cost and lead time, so for a first launch a standard mould bottle with a distinctive label is often the smarter move. Fix wording and format before artwork goes to print.
UK compliance, costing and choosing a partner
Labelling, licensing and duty
In the UK, vermouth is an aromatised wine, so labels must carry the required allergen details, most often sulphites from the wine base. Agree in writing who holds the duty account and who pays duty before bottling. As your production partner we handle manufacturing and compliance support; you sign off the labels and any claims on them.
Batch size, cost and cashflow
Batch size has the biggest effect on unit cost. Craft batches can be small, which makes a smaller launch possible while keeping cash from being tied up too early. Cost mostly comes down to three things: the base wine, the number of botanicals (blends can run from around 24 to more than 40 ingredients) and the pack spec. Minimum quantities and lead times depend on the product and the scale, so agree them early and order well before launch.
What to look for in a producer, and what we bring
A short, clear brief saves everyone time. Before you approach any producer, be clear on your target style, sales channel, bottle size, price position, launch timeline and expected first-year volume. Then ask whether they can hit your cost, timeline and volume, and to see a written scope, a sample timetable and a scale-up plan. That is exactly how we work: recipe development and botanical blending, guidance on aromatised-wine standards and ABV, bottle and closure sourcing and small-batch bottling, ongoing supply once you are live, and even masterclasses and technical tastings so you and your team can talk about the drink with confidence. You keep final flavour sign-off, your brand design and your distribution strategy; we handle the making.
| Service area | What we do | You do |
|---|---|---|
| Recipe development | Botanical blending, maceration, iterative trials | Final flavour approval |
| Compliance | Aromatised-wine standards and ABV guidance | Legal sign-off on label copy and claims |
| Packaging | Bottle and closure sourcing, small-batch bottling | Brand design and marketing story |
| Logistics | Small-batch production and ongoing supply | Sales channels and distribution |
| Education | Masterclasses and technical tastings | Staff training and customer engagement |
Talk to us about your vermouth
Once your liquid, pack and compliance brief are set, the last call is the route. White-label puts speed first; bespoke puts originality first. Whichever fits, three things matter from day one: a clear brief, sensible batch planning, and compliant artwork. Build lead time in from the start.
We have been making English vermouth since 2014, for our own range and for other brands, and we would happily make it for yours. Tell us what you are trying to build and we will tell you honestly whether white-label or bespoke is the right start. Begin with our bespoke and white-label service, or email us at info@asterleybros.com.
Frequently asked questions
Can Asterley Bros make vermouth for my brand?
Yes. We produce vermouth for other brands both ways: white-label from our existing liquid with your branding, or fully bespoke, developed from your brief. The best starting point is our bespoke and white-label service page, or an email to info@asterleybros.com with a line on what you have in mind.
Which route suits a first launch best?
White-label is often the best first move if you want to go quickly and keep risk lower: you launch on a proven liquid and put your energy into positioning, branding and format. Bespoke is the route when owning the recipe is the point, and it is worth the longer development cycle for a premium line.
How much should I budget?
It depends mostly on the route. Premium English vermouth tends to retail around £26 to £32 per 50cl, which you can use to sketch volumes and margins. Bespoke development costs more than white-label because of the trial-batch work, but it gives you a liquid that is yours alone. We will give you a clear cost against your brief.
What needs sorting before bottling?
The liquid needs to be stabilised: racked off any sediment, clarified and precision-filtered so it stays clear and steady. Compliance (allergen labelling, duty roles, label sign-off) should be settled before artwork or bottling. We handle the technical side and guide you through the rest.
Asterley Bros is a London maker of English vermouth, amaro and aperitivo, founded by brothers Rob and Jim Berry in 2014. We make our own range, and we make vermouth for other brands, white-label and bespoke, from our South London base.