Fernet is a style of amaro, with Fernet-Branca being the most notorius one.
Although I will not spend much time on Fernet-Branca, I wanted to make a clearer view of the most common botanicals used in some of the secret recipes from brands producing Fernet style amaros.
Fernet style amaro are generally far less sweet than other amaros and they usually stand at a 40% ABV.
I will start from a story that tells that, allegedly, Fernet was invented by a so called Dr. Fernet with a secret recipe composed by 50 botanicals and herbs. In 1842, Milan based Felice Vittone modified the formula to be more palatable and sold the outcome as “Fernet Vittone”.
In 1845, Bernardino Branca, also in Milan, came out with his own Fernet, “Fernet-Branca”.
The liqueur became so famous that the name “Fernet-Branca” has been used to define a category, while, it is only the name Fernet that refers to the style of the drink.
From here many other producers began to play with different blend of botanicals in order to built their own recipes.
Botanicals
Aloe– you didn’t think of it- Aloe is for instance one of the most bitter flavours in the world. The bitter component, called aloin, is found in the latex just under the surface of the leaf. Scientists have recently learned that a particular gene allele makes some people highly sensitive to aloin’s bitterness, whereas people without that allele can’t even taste it except at high concentrations. This may explain why some people love Italian bitters and others can’t stand them.
Myrrh– the resin from this tree is used and highly prized even in ancient world. The resin has a bitter and somewhat medicinal taste. Its essential oil contains compounds also found in pine, eucalyptus, cinnamon, citrus and cumin.
Chinchona Bark- the bark from which quinine is extracted, probably one of the most known botanicals in the world. Famous for its bitter taste and its wide use in vermouths, tonic waters and various liqueurs.
Rhubarb– Rhubarb is a herb that is considered to have come from China and Tibet but grows spontaneously and perennially in Europe and Asia, where, since ancient times, it was deemed perfect for ornamental and medicinal purposes.
In natural medicine it is still considered an excellent remedy for improving digestive functions and in the kitchen it is normally used to produce amaros, liqueurs and digestifs, but can also be used for marmalades, jams, sweets and infusions.
Chamomile- mostly known for its calming properties. It brings in amaros the unequivocal warm and floral notes. Chamomile flowers contain a rich mixture of aromatic and medicinal compounds that are strongest just after the flowers ripen and dry. In addition to their sedative qualities, flowers’ anti-inflammatory and antiseptic effects actually calm the stomach.
Orris– Orris was popular not so much for its fragrance- although it does contain a compound called irone that gives it a faint violet smell- but as a fixative, holding other fragrances or flavors in place by contributing a missing atom that would otherwise make the fragrance volatile and easily released from the solution it is suspended in.
Extracts of the plant’s roots, stems and seeds are used for medicinal purposes because of its antiseptic, depurative and toning properties.
Saffron– The crocus that know today as saffron is a tripoid- meaning that it has three sets of chromosomes instead of two- and it is sterile. It can only reproduce by creating more corms (a bulblike structure), never by setting a seed. It is probably a mutant that has been cultivated since about 1500 BC.
Each corm produces just one purple flower during a two-week period in fall. That flower produces three-part red stigma we know as threads of saffron. It takes four thousand flowers to gather an ounce of saffron. Its bitterness comes primarily from picrocrocin, which breaks down after it is harvested and dries to an oil called safranal. (One of the ingredient where Fernet-Branca takes most of its flavour)
Galangal– Its scientific name is Alpinia officinarum and it is also known as Thai Ginger because it has the same shape, pungent taste and depurative properties. Its traditional use as a digestive treatment led to its inclusion in early medicinal tonics that later became popular liqueurs.
Gentian- Its medicinal use dates back at least three thousand years. Egyptian papyrus from 1200 BC documents its use as a medicine. The bitter compounds include gentiopicroside and amarogentin, which modern researchers have discovered to promote salivation and production of digestive juices. The plant is usually harvested at four or five years of age.
Gentian root is probably one of the most widely used botanicals in aperitif, liqueur and amaros.
Wormwood– It is a Mediterranean herb that produces volatile oils and bitter compounds that add a kind of mentholated bitterness to aromatized wines and liqueurs.
The use of wormwood in medicine dates back to 1500 BC (maybe even earlier) , praised to treat digestive problems.
Cardamom– Member of the ginger family and the third most expensive spice in the world after saffron and vanilla. The spice contains high levels of linalool and lynalyl acetate, which are fragrant compounds also found in lavander, citrus, and a wide range of other flowers and spices.
Cardamom flavors a wide range of spirits, vermouth and Italian amaros.
Some more botanicals can be found in Fernet such as sage, bay leaves, St. Jhon’s wort, peppermint, mushrooms, orange peel, echinacea, cinnamon bark and many others more exotic spices.
The blend of botanicals differs from brand to brand, but usually the main herbs, flowers and spices used are myrrh, rhubarb, chamomile, cardamom, aloe, and especially saffron.
Two Cocktails to enjoy Fernet
- Hanky Panky (Original Recipe from The Savoy Cocktail Book)
The Hanky Panky was conceived by Ada ‘Coley’ Coleman, Head Bartender at the Savoy’s Hotel American Bar, at the start of the twentieth century.
1/2 Italian Vermouth (Sweet Vermouth)
1/2 Gin
2 dashes of Fernet
Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.
Squeeze orange peel on top.
- Fanciulli
Twist on a Manhattan which substitute Angostura Bitters for a good dose of Fernet
60 ml Rye Whiskey (or Bourbon)
25 ml Sweet Vermouth
10ml Fernet
Stir well and strain into a cocktail glass.
Garnish with an orange peel squeezed on top.
The Late Shift 