Dessert cocktails · Wine · IBA official
Dark berries and plum from the port, warmth from the brandy, and a yolk that turns it all into liquid custard. A little grated nutmeg on top smells like winter evenings.
1½ oz
ruby port ruby or a young tawnye.g. Sandeman · Graham's · Taylor's · Cockburn's · Dow's
½ oz
brandy cognac works welle.g. Asbach · Torres · Metaxa · Rémy Martin · Hennessy
¼ oz
egg yolk about half a yolk
1 pinch of
nutmeg freshly grated, for garnish
Garnish: Freshly grated nutmeg · Ice: Served up, no ice
Porto Flip
Rich, round and velvety with red fruit and a mellow brandy warmth. Moderately strong and pleasantly sweet from the port alone.
Flips are among the oldest mixed drinks in the English-speaking world. In the 17th and 18th centuries a flip was a hot mix of beer, rum and sugar, frothed by plunging a red-hot iron into it. Over time the beer disappeared, a whole egg was added, and Jerry Thomas's bar guide of 1862 already lists cold flips made with egg and sugar alongside the hot ones.
The Porto Flip is a refined member of this family, pairing port with a smaller measure of brandy and using only egg yolk. It appears in early 20th century recipe books and is listed today among the IBA's Unforgettables, which keeps a precise version of the recipe alive in bars around the world.
Yes, a raw egg yolk. Use very fresh eggs or pasteurised yolk if you are unsure.
A ruby port or a young tawny. Save vintage port for drinking on its own.
They are related. Eggnog usually adds milk or cream, while a classic flip relies on egg and wine or spirit only.
The perfect sound
A velvety, wistful night in the old streets of Lisbon and Porto.
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