Fernet Branca Recipe

Chill glass

Place a rocks glass in the freezer for a few minutes or fill it with ice and cold water while you build the cocktail to chill it.

Combine ingredients

Fill a mixing glass with large ice cubes. Pour in 2 oz Fernet-Branca, 0.5 oz sweet vermouth, and 0.25 oz simple syrup.

Stir

Stir the mixture gently with a bar spoon for 20–30 seconds (about 20–30 full rotations) until well chilled and slightly diluted — the glass should feel very cold and the liquid should thicken slightly on the spoon.

Prepare glass

If you used ice to chill the rocks glass, discard the ice and water now. Optionally, add a 1/4 oz rinse of Fernet-Branca: pour 0.25 oz Fernet into the chilled glass, swirl to coat the interior, then discard any excess, leaving only the aroma. Otherwise, proceed without a rinse.

Strain and serve

Strain the stirred cocktail over one large ice cube in the chilled rocks glass.

Garnish

Express the oils of an orange twist over the surface by holding the twist skin-side down above the drink and giving it a quick squeeze, then rub the peel around the rim and drop it into the glass.

Serve immediately. Tasting notes: the Fernet-forward bitter herbal base will be softened by the sweet vermouth and simple syrup, producing a balanced, minty-bitter digestif-style cocktail.

To create a more aromatic, less intense Fernet presence, warm 0.25 oz Fernet in a separate small measure, pour into the chilled glass, swirl to coat the interior, then pour out the excess before straining the cocktail into the glass as described above.