Fernet: Ex-Medicine Transformed into a Popular Drink

Many times it seems like Argentineans enjoy suffering; for that reason “el gaucho” feels good in the loneliness of La Pampa, the tango dancer identifies himself with the melancholic tango lyrics, and most of us choose the bitterness of mate and Fernet to share our time with friends.

I am not surprised Fernet, an alcoholic beverage made of a combination or more than 40 herbs (including rhubarb, chamomile, cardamom, aloe, saffron) based on grape alcohol, was originally a medicine. The herbalist Bernardino Branca, and his sons Luigi, Giuseppe, and Stefano along with his wife María Scala developed this bitter medicine in 1845 in Milan, Italy.

Maria Scala, known as Maria Branca, helped commercialize the drink among women, offering it as a relief for menstrual pain. She also sold it among men as a digestive medicine, also helpful to cure anxiety, back pain, headaches and stomachaches.

Although the drink was created in Italy, it became very popular in the New World. Immigrants used to smuggle it into United States and South America in their suitcases and even inside baby coffins to offset custom officials when alcohol sale was prohibited.

During the alcohol prohibition of 1920 in the United States, the fame of Fernet-Branca as the miracle drink helped it stay alive since doctors kept prescribing it as a medicine, despite its high levels of opium in it.

Nowadays, the drink has become so popular in Argentina that it is almost considered its national drink. Fernet is also gaining popularity in San Francisco, California, but according to Fernet-Branca officials, Argentina is the drink’s number one market.

In Italy, the drink is not as prestigious as in the past. “It’s drinked more in the north than center or south of Italy. This is specially because there are some better home made liquors here, especially in the south where my parents live, that are pretty much tasty and flavoured..” Pietro, economist, Bari, Italy.

What’s the taste like? Why is it so popular?
According to Nate Cavalieri, author of “Myth of Fernet”, San Francisco Weekly December 7 2005, “When you hold a shot glass of Fernet-Branca to your nose, the first thing that strikes you is the physicality of the smell, which, if such a thing existed, is like black licorice-flavored Listerine. Put it to your lips and tip it back, and the assault on the throat and sinuses is aggressively medicinal.”

Fernet has a strange taste, almost indescribable, especially because no one knows what it is made of. "There are only a small amount of people in the world who know the recipe to Fernet-Branca, and they are no telling," says Ricardo Destesano, CEO of Branca Products Argentina and family spokesperson.

"When people asking me what is in the Fernet-Branca," Destesano says, "I tell them life!"

It is possible that there might actually be “life” inside this dark beverage, but the truth is one must train his/her palate to enjoy the taste.

“I confess the first time I tried it I did not like it. In fact, my exxxx boyfriend was addicted to Fernet! Haha…and after we split.. I started to go out more often…I started drinking Fernet-with-Coke.. and I loved it! I even discovered new taste.. a mixture of herbs…and together with Coke, results in a bitter and sweet beverage…yummy, yummy…” Aldana, communicator, Caballito, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

“The first time I tried it I found it disgusting…very bitter and it wasn’t something I enjoyed. Little by little I got used to the taste of Fernet and I learned to enjoy it, but only premium brands, the other ones continue to be undrinkable…and now I like it a lot. Its bitter taste reduces the sweetness of Coca-Cola, making it a nice drink. Its menthol flavor is also very good because it is more refreshing. I drink it almost every weekend. I drink it with friends and by myself. My friends don’t like it, but I keep on drinking it…” Leandro, industrial engineering and business student, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

On the other hand, there are people who are not capable of taming their palates to the drink’s bitterness, “The first time I tried it was in 2001. They asked me if I knew what it was, and obviously, having grown up outside of Argentina I had no clue what they were talking about, so they treated me one. We made a toss, and drank the first gulp. The first reaction was of total rejection, the taste was less bitter than what I expected…but I did not like it at all, although I still drank it. It was an unpleasant experience in my case… and since that day I never ordered a Fernet. I have tried it in other occasions, with friends and family, but I have not been able to loose that taste that it left me the first time,” Johnny, international commerce, Venezuela-Argentina, currently in, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

“I hate Fernet. Not long ago I drank a glass thinking it was soda and when I tasted it in my mouth I almost felt sick. It is too bitter for me, even when I mix it with soda, it still has that disgusting syrup taste. It displeases me so much that when my husband, fan of Fernet-with-Coke, is drinking it, I avoid him so I don’t have to smell it or taste it. But I would be unfair if I say it does not move the masses,” Cecilia, journalist, Avellaneda, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Despite the love-hate relationship generated by this drink, its popularity continues to expand across the globe. Nowadays its popularity is rapidly spreading in Venezuela, where it is also used as a medicine as in its origins.

A little while back, a Venezuelan friend who lives in Argentina wrote to me about a curious fact I was unaware of: “Early July one of my best friends from Venezuela came to visit me in Argentina. He asked me about Fernet, since apparently, it is gaining adepts in Venezuela. In fact, in my recent visit to Venezuela I confirmed that you can find Fernet-Branca in various liquor stores. I found it curious, and when I asked my friends there, most of them knew the drink…and more than one of them loved it… They even use it to relieve stomachaches…it is incredible since when my dad was small, they used to give you a shot to cure stomach aches… HOLY REMEDY!!!”

Fernet, once a bitter medicine that today generates clashing, but indisputable passions.

What does Fernet mean to you?

Italian Wedding in the Capital of Cuarteto

“Confites” (sugar and chocolate coated almonds) and cakes that last a year; essentials to maintain Italian traditions intact.

The city of Cordoba in Argentina, has a strong and unique identity renown worldwide; fernet with coke, cuarteto, humor and an accent so particular that every cordobes can proudly scream “I need no passport ‘cause I have the accent of Cordoba’s capital”, as cuartetero Rodrigo used to sing.

Despite this unique culture, there are people from Cordoba who still choose to maintain the traditions of their European ancestors, especially during holidays and wedding celebrations.

During this Italian wedding in Cordoba, the newly-weds gave out “confites” as a souvenir at the end of the party, following an Italian tradition known as “bomboniera”, born in the wedding of Vittorio Emanuele, prince of Naples and future King of Italy, and Elena de Montenegro, after they gave our this aristocratic sweet to all their guests.

In traditional weddings, Italians give out “confites” as a symbol of good fortune. Accoring to RZBomboniere “Almonds have a sweet-sour taste that represent life. Its sugar coating symbolizes hope for having a more sweet than sour union.” Tradition indicates that the newly-weds should offer five almonds to each guest for health, richness, happiness, fertility and longevity. However, there are times that they only give out three. They can choose to give as many as they’d like, but the number should be uneven to attract good fortune.

In addition to the “confites”, the bride and the women of both families cooked a rich nut wedding cake following an Italian recipe; following the tradition of their Italian ancestors, they then cut a large piece of cake, and put it away to enjoy it the following year during their first-year anniversary.

Nowadays with the existence of freezers it is possible to conserve the cake for such a long time, but I cannot think how they keep the cake intact for a year around 1800. When we are talking about traditions, Could we put our diet as an excuse for not trying the year-old cake or is there no valid excuse for following traditions?

Have you ever tried a year-old cake? Do Italians still keep maintaining this tradition?

CyberShopping in Argentina, Experience Worthy of Surrealistic Life

Address > Enter > Pop. The website that I was looking for opened up. Click-Click. "Awesome! The exact tennis shows I was looking for!," exclaimed my friend, Would you come get them with me?

Jobless, and with lots of free time at that time, I agreed to go with him. Besides I'd never been to the area of Buenos Aires where the store was located and I wanted to explore that part of the city.

After a 40-minute bus ride we arrived at the given address, although wefelt we were in the wrong place: an area of low houses next to the railways. But the address was correct; so we walked about two blocks to thedoor of the "store", a white house built in the beginning of the XX Century.

A guard received us at the door, he asked a couple of strange questions from the other side of the bars, he asked for our ID, wrote our names downin a book and opened the bars. As we walked in, we passed through a metaldetector and the guard searched our bags; the situation was strange and it reminded me of the pre-departure flight procedures.

After we passed these controls, he opened a second door where we found a third door thatseparated us from the tennis shoes. Behind the last door, the stored resembled any regular shoe store in Av. Santa Fe or Av. Cordoba, with shoes and tennis rackets displayed on thewalls, and various people trying on shoes and clothes. However, the atmosphere was tense, and the salesmen kept looking into the cameras and the safeguarded door the whole time. I felt like the protagonist of one ofthose hidden camera prank shows. Only this time, it was no joke; my friendwas as stunned as I was.

After a little while, the storekeepers brought the shoes he had previouslyreserved through the Internet. He paid for them in a hurry and left theplace as fast as we could. "They were the exact shoes I was looking for!" he told me as we were leaving, "and I had not been able to find them anywhereelse." At that time, he was defeated by desire. In his place, I would havesettled for the desire, and from now on I can assure you I will stick totraditional shopping. As of now, in Argentina, Internet shopping is not made for me.