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Quelle Vie

Name: Quelle Vie
Total time: 3 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 50 ml Cognac (brandy); 15 ml Kummel liqueur

Difford’s Guide

Discerning Drinkers (15)

Measurements in:

Serves:

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Ingredients
1 ²⁄₃ fl oz	Cognac (brandy)
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Kummel liqueur

How to make

Glass

Photographed in an UB Koto Old Fashioned 30cl

Prepare

Select and pre-chill an OLD-FASHIONED GLASS.
Prepare garnish of orange zest twist.

Method

STIR all ingredients with ice.
FINE STRAIN into ice-filled glass (preferably over a large cube or chunk of block ice).

Garnish

EXPRESS orange zest twist over the cocktail and use as garnish.

Flavour Profile

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

Health & Nutrition

Alcohol content:

1.4 standard drinks
31.13% alc./vol. (62.27° proof)
20.3 grams of pure alcohol

History

Adapted from a recipe in Harry Craddock's 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book.

QUELLE VIE COCKTAIL.
⅓ Kummel.
⅔ Brandy.
STIR well and strain into cocktail glass.

Brandy gives you courage and kummel makes you cautious, thus giving you the perfect mixture of bravery and caution, with the bravery predominating."
Harry Craddock, The Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

More cocktails by Harry Craddock

Review

Originally served straight-up but better over ice, this cocktail is kümmel's answer to the Stinger. To quote Harry Craddock, "Brandy gives you courage and Kümmel makes you cautious, thus giving you the perfect mixture of bravery and caution, with the bravery predominating."

Cocktail of the day:

17th April 2026 is International Kummel Day

Gallery

Comments & Discussion

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Chris Dimal 25w

Used Three Barrels and Helbing Kuemmel. Utterly horrendous drink. It felt like eating a musty crushed caraway seeds straight with some battery acid thrown for good measure. I wouldn't be surprised if a better brandy might make it better, but it is so horrendous that I don't care to try it again. Also, instructions indicate a straight-up serve, whereas the picture is of a rocks glass.