The Porto Flip Recipe

Posted in Brandy on March 5, 2014

The Porto Flip is a brandy based cocktail with a very long history. It used to be very popular in old times, but it was actually almost forgotten in modern times. You can easily make Porto Flip at home if you like brandy based cocktails. It has a creamy texture and a delicious taste, so it would be a shame for the recipe to be forever forgotten.

Nowadays the Porto Flip is an IBA official cocktail. The first written reference about it appeared in 1862 in a book called “How to Mix Wines”. This was the first recipe that included the use of an egg yolk. The name of the cocktail comes from a known wine variety (red port wine) and from the froth that is needed in order for it to be delicious. Flip literally means froth. In old times, the froth was pretty hard to obtain, but nowadays it is easier with modern mixing utensils. Traditionally, the Porto Flip is served straight up and garnished with a sprinkle of nutmeg.  The IBA recommends using brandy, red port wine and an egg yolk for the recipe. These ingredients have to be shaken well in order to obtain the above mentioned froth. This is in fact applicable for all cocktails with eggs.

There are several variations of the Porto Flip which might sound appealing to you. For instance, one also calls from cream and powdered sugar besides the classic ingredients. Another variation uses the whole egg and not only the yolk. This is known as Thomas’ Recipe. If you want a sweeter drink, some bartenders believe that you can add two tablespoons of cane sugar to the original ingredients. One of the weirdest variations of the Porto Flip is known as the Prairie Oyster. It uses sherry instead of brandy and it is served with Worchester sauce and ketchup. In this case, the ingredients are not supposed to be shaken.

How to Prepare the Porto Flip

You need the following ingredients:

• ¼ oz. of brandy
• 1 ½ oz. of red port wine.
• 1 egg yolk.
• A pinch for nutmeg.

Shake all the ingredients except the nutmeg together with ice. Make sure you take some extra time for shaking in order for the egg yolk to become frothy. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a sprinkle of nutmeg. If you want, you can add ¾ oz. of cream and half a tsp. of powdered sugar. These ingredients are going to make the cocktail even creamier than it already is.