Amancio Ortega, renowned as one of the world’s wealthiest figures and founder of Inditex, has an eye for more than fashion. He also has a notable interest in vermouth. This year his daughter, Marta Ortega, who leads the fashion giant, surprised more than 50,000 employees with a distinctive vermouth as part of the festive offerings. The gift blends a Galician accent with a classic soda bottle, a nod to a winter collaboration between the Inditex family and a celebrated restaurant chef. Manuel Costiña, chef at Retiro da Costina, which holds a Michelin star, helped shape this special vermouth product as a result of a shared agreement with the Ortega family.
Across Galicia and along the Costa da Morte, soda production has long stood as a vibrant industrial thread. In the last century many brands vied for supremacy in this fizzy market, and the containers that once housed these beverages found new purpose in premium vermouth bottles. The project drew on the culinary talents of a Santa Comba chef from A Coruña who joined forces with the Inditex circle.
“I came across thousands of these bottles in a friend’s garage and decided to buy them”, Costiña explains. He recalls how a casual conversation with the business family led to a commission to craft a vermouth with Galician character. The initiative gave a second life to once-used bottles with mechanical seals. This season, more than 50,000 bottles are slated to reach Inditex employees as part of the company’s Christmas indulgence, a gesture tied to Marta Ortega’s leadership.
Costiña’s aperitif is a story of patient craft and regional flavor. It celebrates the pairing of ceramic cups with Godello wine and the botanicals that define this Atlantic region. The maturation process follows a deliberate rhythm: two months of aging in Galician oak barrels after a month of gentle refinement. The result is a balanced drink that carries both maritime freshness and a hint of oaken warmth.
“The recycled bottles are the same vessels that once contained soft drinks”, Costiña notes. He remembers how bars in earlier days sparked conversations by screens that didn’t show the newscast, a period when a simple bottle could start a chat. The limited edition vermouth showcases some of the most iconic vessels that Marta Ortega chose to reclaim, reawakening a sense of camaraderie among Inditex employees. This initiative stands as a bridge between regional tradition and a modern corporate culture, reinforcing the sense of community within the company’s expansive network. [Citation: Costiña interview, 2024]