Brandy Flip
Dry shake ∙ 5 min ∙ 26.3% ABV ∙
The Brandy Flip is a whole-egg cocktail of cognac, sugar syrup, and a whole egg, shaken until silky and served up with grated nutmeg. Rich and custardy on the tongue, with warm cognac depth, a gentle sweetness, and a fragrant dusting of nutmeg on the nose.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Shake all ingredients with ice: Cognac 60 mlSugar syrup 15 mlEgg 1 pc
- Strain back into the shaker
- Dry shake (without ice) to emulsify
- Fine strain into the chilled glass
- Garnish with grated nutmeg
Tips
- Shake the whole egg with the cognac, syrup and ice first, then strain the liquid back into the empty shaker.
- Dry shake that chilled mix for about 15 seconds without ice — emulsifying it cold is what gives the flip its thick, frothy body rather than a thin, eggy one.
- Fine-strain into a chilled coupe to catch any egg chalazae, leaving a smooth, silky surface for the nutmeg garnish.
History
The flip belongs to a category of drinks first documented in England in the late 17th century, with the term appearing in print by 1695 to describe a mixture of beer, rum, and sugar heated with a red-hot iron poker plunged into the mug, which made the drink froth. Considered a sailor's drink, it crossed the Atlantic to colonial America, where tavern-keepers commonly warmed and frothed the mix with an iron rod heated in the fireplace embers rather than pouring it between pitchers as in England. Over the 18th and 19th centuries the style evolved: beer was dropped, eggs were added for richness, and the drink gradually shifted from a hot, communal tavern serve to a cold, shaken individual cocktail. A cold, beaten-egg version of the flip, made with brandy or gin (or sherry) and shaken rather than heated, appears in the 1874 guide The American Bar-Tender; or the Art and Mystery of Mixing Drinks, and Jerry Thomas's 1887 edition of How to Mix Drinks included brandy, rum, gin, and whiskey flips made in equal parts of spirit, sugar, and egg. The Brandy Flip itself is one of the oldest named variants of this family, using brandy as the base spirit in place of the original rum, with sugar and egg replacing the earlier beer-and-molasses formula once the drink was served cold.
FAQ
What is a Brandy Flip?
It is a classic cocktail made with cognac, sugar syrup, and a whole egg, shaken until smooth and served up in a coupe with grated nutmeg. The whole egg gives it a rich, custard-like texture unlike most shaken drinks, and it sits at about 26% ABV.
How do you make a Brandy Flip?
Combine cognac, sugar syrup and a whole egg in a shaker and double shake: with ice first to chill, then strained back into the empty shaker and shaken again without ice to emulsify the egg fully. Fine-strain into a chilled coupe and grate fresh nutmeg over the top.
What are the ingredients in a flip cocktail?
A flip is traditionally spirit, sugar, and a whole egg, shaken and served up with grated nutmeg on top. This Brandy Flip follows that structure exactly, using cognac as the spirit.
What is a 2-ingredient brandy cocktail?
This Brandy Flip is not a 2-ingredient drink; it uses three core ingredients: cognac, sugar syrup, and a whole egg, plus a nutmeg garnish. A true 2-ingredient brandy cocktail would need to drop either the sweetener or the egg, which would no longer make it a flip.
Why is it called a flip cocktail?
The name refers to the vigorous shaking, or "flipping," of the spirit, sugar, and whole egg needed to fully blend them into a smooth, frothy drink. It is a distinct family from eggnog rather than a variation of it.
What's the difference between a flip and a nog?
A flip is a single shaken serving of spirit, sugar, and a whole egg, served up in a glass like a coupe. Eggnog is typically a larger, milk- or cream-based batch drink, often made ahead and served chilled or warm, especially around the holidays.
