Doctor Zeus

Difford’s Guide
Discerning Drinkers (25 ratings)

Glass:

Serve in an Old-fashioned glass

Ingredients:
12 fl oz Fernet Branca liqueur
20 dried Raisins
2 fl oz Cognac (brandy)
14 fl oz Sugar syrup 'rich' (2 sugar to 1 water, 65.0°Brix)
16 fl oz Galliano Espresso Coffee liqueur
1 dash Orange Bitters by Angostura
× 1 1 serving
Read about cocktail measures and measuring

Prepare:

  1. Select and pre-chill an OLD-FASHIONED GLASS.
  2. No garnish to prepare.

How to make:

  1. POUR fernet into ice-filled glass.
  2. Separately, MUDDLE raisins in base of shaker.
  3. Add other ingredients and SHAKE with ice.
  4. DISCARD contents of glass and STRAIN contents of shaker into the chilled fernet-coated glass.

Garnish:

  1. Serve naked, without garnish.

Review:

Not that far removed from a Sazerac, this cocktail is innovative and great tasting.

View readers' comments

History:

Adapted from a recipe created in 2001 by Adam Ennis at Isola in Knightsbridge, London, England.

Alcohol content:

We don't have enough information to calculate the alc./vol., but based on known ingredients, this recipe contains at least:

  • 24.8 grams of pure alcohol

Difford’s Guide remains free-to-use thanks to the support of the brands in green above. Values stated for alcohol and calorie content, and number of drinks an ingredient makes should be considered approximate.

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6th June at 14:42
It's like a strange mix of a Sazerac and a Cognac OF. I'm digging it though. I thought the raisins would make it a "raisin cocktail" but they go perfectly with the cognac (as they should, I guess). The coffee liqueur is fantastic as it adds just a hint of bitter chocolate on the finish.
19th September 2024 at 20:08
This is a clever number. I tried with a rather expensive Cognac and didn't regret it.
14th November 2020 at 02:43
Intriguing. You could get by with less Fernet, but what sticks is definitely present, and it wields well with the bitter coffee flavor.
18th September 2020 at 02:59
Is it really necessary to pour a whole oz of Fernet into the glass to coat it just to dump it out?
19th September 2024 at 20:06
That's what they do in Knightsbridge but here in East London, "discard" means "open your mouth and drink".
18th September 2020 at 07:10
Agreed. Does seem over the top, hence I have halved the measure in the recipe above.