Vermouth time in Cantabria is above all a Sunday midday ritual: a glass of vermouth on tap with some fried squid or seasoned potatoes, standing at the bar or out on a terrace. In Santander, the go-to spots are Vermutería Solórzano and Bar del Puerto; in Santoña, La Anchoateca La Mutua pairs it with anchovies. All of them are less than 40 minutes from Bareyo.
In Cantabria the aperitif is called «tomar el blanco», and Sunday midday is still sacred: whole families filling bars and terraces between 12:00 and 14:00, a glass of vermouth on tap in hand and a small plate to nibble on the side. No table booking needed, no need to dress up: it's a short ritual, standing up, that has become almost an institution in Santander.
Near Bareyo, the natural vermouth route runs through Santander, just over half an hour away, and Santoña, even closer. They're not the only options, but they're the ones that have spent longest doing the same thing well: proper draught vermouth, local produce and nothing overcomplicated.
The vermouth tradition: why in Santander it's called «el blanco»
The draught vermouth served in Santander has its own name: locals call it «el blanco» (the white one), after the pale colour of the dry varieties that became popular in the mid-20th century in bars around the centre and the fishing quarter. The custom took hold at the bars near the harbour, where fishermen would stop for the aperitif before lunch, and that's where much of today's pairing comes from: vermouth with fried squid, periwinkles or prawns, almost always produce that had arrived from the fish market that same morning.
Vermutería Solórzano: the classic on Peña Herbosa
It opened in 1941 on Calle Peña Herbosa and has barely changed since: the marble bar, the barrels on display and a short menu built around draught vermouth. It's drunk standing up, almost always with fried squid or a plate of croquettes on the side, and on weekends it's common to find a queue at the door at aperitif time.
Bar del Puerto: fried squid facing the sea
A few minutes away, on Calle Hernán Cortés, Bar del Puerto has spent four generations serving the same ritual: a wooden bar, draught vermouth and its fried squid, considered among the best in Cantabria by much of the city. If you'd rather have a terrace with a view than stand at a bar, La Mayor, on Calle Juan de la Cosa, and the terrace at the Balneario de la Magdalena, opposite the Palace, are two regular alternatives for the same plan with more room to sit down.
La Anchoateca La Mutua, in Santoña
In Santoña, less than 20 minutes from Bareyo, vermouth is paired with the thing the town does best: anchovies. La Anchoateca La Mutua specialises in Cantabrian anchovies and offers tastings from different canneries served alongside vermouth and sobao pasiego, a combination that has become the house signature here. It's a small place, so in high season it's worth arriving early to find a spot at the bar.
Other tapas areas if you want to keep going
If you fancy carrying on after vermouth, Turismo de Cantabria points to two go-to areas to round off the route in Santander: the Puerto Chico and Plaza Porticada area, right in the centre, and El Sardinero, which stretches from La Magdalena to Cabo Menor with its own line-up of bars and terraces facing the sea. Neither is far from the places in this article, so you can string it all together on the same walk without needing the car.
What you need to know
Timing: vermouth is drunk mainly between 12:00 and 14:00, especially on Sundays; bars open on weekdays too but with much less of a buzz. Price: a glass of vermouth with a small dish usually runs €6-10 per person, though it's worth checking at each place since not all of them post a price list. Getting there: Santander is just over half an hour from Bareyo via the A-8, and Santoña less than 20 minutes via the CA-141; in both cases parking in the centre gets tricky on good-weather weekends, so it's worth arriving with time to spare. If the plan runs into the afternoon, Santander is also worth following up with a pintxos route: we have a guide to the tapas route that never fails to round off the day.
Cantabrian vermouth is unthinkable without fried squid on the side: it's the dance partner no harbour bar dares to leave out.
The vermouth plan is one of the best fits for a short getaway from Bareyo: head out mid-morning, work your way round a couple of bars, and be back in time for a relaxed lunch. It's exactly the kind of plan we'll be recommending to guests at Villa Camino and Villa Monte once they open their doors, with availability already planned for September 2027.
