And no, we're not talking about awkward formalities when you first meet someone. We're talking about taking a shot of the Italian herbal bitter liqueur Fernet Branca behind the bar - a medicinal elixir of sorts that dates back to the 1800s. The Bartender's Handshake isn't as much of a literal handshake between bartenders, but perhaps more that silent downward nod between in-the-knows as a sign of solidarity.

Source: Tales of the Cocktail

It has been said that within the hubs of bartendering within U.S cities, industry members have always been offering each other shots behind the barback: be it between bartenders running a shift, bartenders visiting each others' bars, the list goes on. The go-to choice had always been some sort of amaro - a bitter liqueur that doubles both as an aperitif or digestif that features in a cocktail.

Perhaps the only time drinking on the job is acceptable - when bartenders are handing over shifts or showing hospitality to fellow brethen. Source: Food Republic

Through me browsing the internet on the phenomenon (no amount of daydreaming about shaking up cocktails behind a bar would turn me into a bartender just yet),I haven't found any concrete reason as to why the bartender's handshake is almost always an amaro. If I had to hedge a guess, it's probably because it's a shot only the industry pros would dare to have.

A shoutout to @moveandshakerco for the over-the-top praise about Fernet Branca.

Using an amaro or bitter liqueur in a cocktail requires skill on the bartender's end,  balancing the complex herbaceous flavours with spirits, juices and other modifiers. Similarly to how chefs has to know every ingredient like the back of their palm, bartenders have to be very acquainted with these often overpoweringly sweet, bitter, spicy, intense liqueurs in their trade. As the audience enjoying away in a perfectly crafted cocktail, only those who've earned their stripes would dare to take on something that's "not meant to be drank as a shot".

It's one thing to love an amaro, but I think having Fernet Branca on tap like Tokyo Confidential does is on a whole other level. Source: @tokyoconfidentialbar

Or maybe, a simpler and more practical explanation would be that a shot of the intensely flavoured stuff is the perfect pick-me-up for bartenders tending to a long, usually hectic, bar shift.

Here's the fun bit as well - depending which city you're getting your cocktails from in the U.S, you may be getting a different amaro represent as its handshake! For Chicago it'll be the Jeppson’s Malört, in San Francisco it'll be Fernet Branca, and at some bars, Cynar, Fino Sherry, or the prestigious Chartreuse if the bartender's really up to give you a treat (we'll go into a deep dive on Chartreuse in the future).

Source: Fernet Branca

So why has Fernet Branca became synonymous to the bartender's handshake? That's because a sales rep of a team played right into this industry hat-tipping. Brothers Tore and Bret Kragerud took a leaf out of an American WWI legend, where one pilot who was shot down behind enemy lines evaded capture and was recognised by friendly forces with his bronze medallion. Tore was a Fernet Branca sales rep, Bret ran a souvenir shop selling medallions, and together the both combined the idea and made a drinking game.

Source: [Youtube]  Fratelli Branca Distillerie "Fernet About It"

Here's how the game works: Fernet Branca coins would be distributed to bartenders and industry friends. If said bartender presented the Fernet Branca coin to the bar, and if the one behind the bar isn't able to produce a Fernet coin of their own, they're obliged to pour a shot of fernet on the house. Here's the catch: you can't ask, purchase, or "obtain" a Fernet coin - they are handed to you if you've "earned" it.

Source: Frame Hazelpark

The first Fernet Branca coins rolled out in 2013 in San Francisco, and the insider's game hasn't only branched out further to other parts of the world - limited edition coins from bar events, cities, festivals expanded the collectibles lore, where a bartender could only get hold of another version of the coin by trading it with other bartenders. There's even a whole host of rules surrounding the coins on Fernet Branca's website - a ten commandments of sorts. I think the term "reciprocal recognition" sums up the bartender's handshake quite elegantly.

Fratelli Branca proudly displays some of their coins on this wall within their museum.

Now, onto the actual Fernet Branca itself. Fernet Branca is said to be made with 27 ingredients: the numbers bounce between this number and over 40, and there hasn't been a clear answer. If you visit the Fernet Branca museum (Museo Branca), there would be a "botanical wheel" right in the middle of a room that displays all the herbs that are allegedly used within the medicinal digestif. Here's the somewhat-official list as far as people gathered:

Aloe vera, anise, bitter orange, cardamom, chamomile, chinese rhubarb, cinchona bark, cinnamon, cocoa, coffee, columbo, galangal, gentian root, juniper, laurel leaf, linden, mace, marjoram, musk, , myrrh, oregano, orris, peppermint, saffron, small centaury, tea leaves, white agaric, yarrow, zedoary. The fernet, after being boiled, cooked, distilled and extracted, is placed in huge oak vats that is said to be of Slovakian origin, in more than 10,000 litre batches.

Anecdotal evidence of people's first taste of Fernet Branca goes something like this: you'll hate it on the first sip, you'll get used to it on the second sip, you'll get addicted to it on the third sip. Let's put that to the test - would it be love at third sip?

Fernet Branca, 39% ABV - Review

Nose: You get such a complex aroma that it reminded me of an old apothecary: the rosewood cabinet, bitter powdery aromas with a spicy backbone, and a profound dried herb fragrance. The peppermint is quite pronounced on the aroma, something like Wood's peppermint cough syrup, alongside a faint aroma of dried ginger, sliced chinese root herbs (think ginseng, angelica root), and a minty-floral scent of chamomile tea. When you swirl and let the amaro sit for abit, you start to get baking spices, freshly sanded wood pieces, and at some instances, a vanilla sugar aroma.

Taste: The taste is a lot more drying and bitter than the nose would lead you to believe - you get a whole complex burst of flavours - think of all the herbal throat lozenges you can find in your medicine cabinet and pop them all into your mouth, but without its sweetness. I get a drying bitteriness of ginseng powder, gentiane root (if I had to describe this, think of a cross between galangal root, ginseng and moringa seed), and a deep minty flavour of peppermint. Subsequent sips bring out the sweetness within the fernet, giving flavours of mace, brown sugar and Mediterranean dried herb mix.

Finish: As the floral, herbaceous flavours take their exit, you're left with a lingering, rooty bitterness that is both smooth and intense. The flavours of the gentiane root, orris and angelica grows slow and steady in intensity, without giving any semblance of astringent texture on the palate. The mintiness you taste throughout now only leaves that menthol cooling effect without any flavour - instead giving you the same sensation as gargling mouthwash. Interestingly, I feel like you do get some whispers of strongly steeped black coffee on the finish as well, something like when the astringent bitterness of a brew has faded and left its nutty, oily flavours on the palate.

My Thoughts

There really isn't quite anything like this. For one, if you'll compare Fernet Branca to many other amaros and digestifs, it's a lot less sweet with a considerable bump in alcohol content. The sweetness, I feel, is really only there to neuter some of the more intense flavours a provide a richer mouthfeel to the fernet. If I had to describe the fernet, it'll be like having black coffee or tea right after a meal - something that is intensely flavoured, but does not leave a cloying, unsatisfying aftertaste on the palate. Given how much of the fernet's original purpose was to serve as a digestif, I really think it serves its purpose true and true, much like an Americano or straight black tea would.

I do have to say that I have a perchant for bitter, herbal flavours - but for those who are averse to rooty, bitter tastes, this might be difficult at first. I really do think this needs the aforementioned multiple sips to be truly enjoyed - let your palate get acclimatised to the initial flurry of flavours, and you'll be able to pick up various nuances and botanicals being expressed.

Fernet Branca Menta, 28% ABV - Review

Brrr, Branca Menta!

At least, that's what the quippy marketing slogan says. The "menta" refers to mint, and as you guessed it, mintiness is the key feature for the Fernet Branca's sibling. What's special about the Fernet Menta is that it uses a special type of mint found in the Piedmont region of Italy. According to the official Fernet Branca website, the recipe is the same between the two fernets, except for the addition of peppermint oil.

Maria Callas, 1923 - 1977. Source: Wikipedia

The origins of this version traces to the popular singer Maria Callas, an American born Greek soprano who gained much popularity for her opera singing in the 1950s to 60s. The official story goes that Maria Callas, before taking to the stage, always enjoyed a glass of Fernet Branca with a few mint leaves. Some versions instead say that the Fernet Branca was mixed with a bit of mint syrup.

Source: Brancamenta

Fans of the opera singer sought to copy her ways, so much so the mint-Fernet Branca combo became too popular for the Fratelli Branca Distillerie to ignore. This pushed the distillery to officially release a mintier sibling of the original, with the onomatopoeia "Brrr" perfectly encapsulating the icy cold sensation when the fernet is drunk with ice.

Nose: You definitely get a hit of mint and refined white sugar right away - imagine white mint rock candies on a stick. Beyond that strong peppermint aroma, there is a bit of a menthol aroma that leaves a trail of chill down your windpipe, something like eucalyptus mint. To me, this smells like a mix between the Eclipse brand strong mint, Woods cough syrup and the Hudson's Mint & Eucalyptus jujubes. When you let it sit a bit more, it starts to smell very close to pei pa kao syrup, but with less honey, more loquat and more mint.

Taste: Thick and dense, but instantly, the mintiness pricks on your tongue and goes straight up your sinuses. There is a toothsome sort of mint candy gum feel in terms of both taste and texture, while at the same time, you start to get more woody flavours seeping through - think chewing on angelica root, ginseng slices, and very sight hints of that aromatic bitterness from gentiane.

Finish: On the finish, the bitter flavours start to take an exit, but left behind is a whole myriad of herbaceousness. In an oversimplification, it really reminds me of sarsapilla flavoured cough syrup - but digging dipper, you get flavours of sarsapilla berries, spearmint, peppermint, and even some sweet flavours of cloves and anise. The eucalyptus leaves and thyme flavours also feature quite a bit here as well.

My Thoughts

Do note that in my opinion, the Fernet Branca Menta comes in quite considerably sweeter than the OG, which could be perfect for those not accustomed to its rooty bitterness.

It's very on the nose on the mint, and I mean that in every literal sense. However, as someone who grew up eating lots of breath mints (I even made it a bit of a game to find the strongest mint available in the mom and pop shops), I really love how mint forward this liqueur is. Don't get me wrong, this isn't just mint, there is a whole bouquet of delicious, deep medicinal herb flavours that take their time to develop on the palate. For those who are fans of Fernet Branca, I really hope they give this a try - some may like it, some may not. Me? While I prefer the standard FB, I can see myself itching for that intense mint flavour, and to add to the mischief, I'll have the whole shot chilled in a big block of ice for added coldness.

Conclusion

Even though I'm not a suave mixologist churning out fashionable cocktails behind the bar, I can see the appeal of the Fernet Branca. Did it take me three sips to be addicted? No! I really love the intense complexity of both liqueurs, and in hot sunny Singapore, I do find myself itching for an ice cold, bittersweet digestif to ward off the food coma from a heavy lunch. In my bar-hopping adventures, I find myself searching for cocktails that feature the Fernet Branca, and I observe that the Fernet Branca really adds to a deep, sophisticated herbaecous flavour that stands particularly well with stiffer drinks - think chocolate negronis, riffs on the Manhattan, the like.

With the craft cocktail scene showing no signs of slowing down, I expect to see more Fernet Branca cocktails on the menu (though, I wouldn't complain if someone fixed me a shot of this stuff, topped with some crushed ice).

 

@vernoncelli