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Froupe Cocktail
A bittersweet, herbal old-school drink that's in line for rediscovery
Jeremy Harrold
20th March 2025 at 17:35
More complex than I expected with a bitter sweet finish. I do think the bitters are more than optional.
7th February 2025 at 01:58
Tastes great! I substituted licor 43 for the Benedictine.
12th December 2024 at 02:12
For fun, replaced the vermouth with Gancia Americano. Very nice cocktail.
23rd July 2024 at 13:22
Accidentally put 7.5 ml Benedictine instead of 5. The balance was thrown but the flavour was immense! And I’m a bit agnostic on Benedictine but shows what it does in the drink!
10th February 2024 at 11:57
I came back to try a Cynar variation; more of the Addington than the Froupe, but my curiosity led to this gem:
“ If you look up the word “froupe” in Dr. Johnson’s Dictionary, you’ll find it means “To dive with a sudden impetuosity. A word out of use.” But more than that, it’s a word that never existed. Dr. Johnson, having misread the word “soupe,” meaning to swoop, created a new word.” from Professor Jack Lynch.
“ If you look up the word “froupe” in Dr. Johnson’s Dictionary, you’ll find it means “To dive with a sudden impetuosity. A word out of use.” But more than that, it’s a word that never existed. Dr. Johnson, having misread the word “soupe,” meaning to swoop, created a new word.” from Professor Jack Lynch.
12th July 2024 at 10:44
In a beautiful irony, I have found the “Fioupe” in the 1924 “Les Cocktails et Les Boissons Americaines”.
“Prepare in the tumbler half-filled with broken ice: Equal parts of Italian vermouth and good old Cognac, 1 teaspoon of Bénédictine. Stir well and pour into the cocktail glass with lemon zest.
Mr. Fioupe was, before the war, a very well-known figure throughout the Riviera.”
So “froupe” exists both as a word and a cocktail due to transliteration errors.
“Prepare in the tumbler half-filled with broken ice: Equal parts of Italian vermouth and good old Cognac, 1 teaspoon of Bénédictine. Stir well and pour into the cocktail glass with lemon zest.
Mr. Fioupe was, before the war, a very well-known figure throughout the Riviera.”
So “froupe” exists both as a word and a cocktail due to transliteration errors.
24th July 2023 at 03:42
Just because Craddock's customers back in the 1920's liked equal proportions doesn't mean we still have to overwhelm the cognac with vermouth. 2 oz cognac to 1 oz vermouth works fine. And I like the addition of Boker's, which Craddock could have done back then (though it's not in his book).
7th October 2022 at 10:28
I accidentally upped it to 2 shots of XO brandy and vermouth which would have reduced the sweetness a bit (only just fitted in my Nick & Nora glass though!). Also used a dash of (homemade) coffee bitters and one of orange. The result was quite delicious, complex and did seem to get better as it warmed up. I want to try it with Cynar or Dubbonet now.
25th May 2023 at 11:49
A further note, perhaps to self, is that the brandy is critical. With St Remy XO, this was fantastic. With St Remy VSOP, it’s okay.
21st July 2022 at 00:12
Wonderfully balanced cocktail. I think I would consider using one of my French brandies over the cognac next time. I find the cognac is softer in flavour and some of the nuances of the cognac does get lost. But then I happen to be a bigger fan of Armagnac over Cognac for the same reason. Regardless, it is an excellent aperitif and would make again.
18th February 2024 at 12:00
I used domaine tariquet XO Armagnac and Dolin rouge, and was very happy with the result!
2nd June 2022 at 20:01
Used Martini Rubino. Kinda overpowered cognac. But I like the sweet and bitter taste of this cocktail.
3rd April 2022 at 02:35
This one got even tastier as it warmed up a bit.
2nd January 2022 at 20:31
I make a version of this that my friend calls a Froupe Carre. 30ml of cognac, rye, and sweet vermouth (prefer Remy, Michters, Carpano respectively), with the same 5ml of Bene and 2 dashes of Boker’s. It tastes a bit less candied and somehow the Boker’s seems to shine through more.
21st May 2023 at 10:31
This will be my variation for next Friday if I remember. It sounds like it needs better branding.
Anonymous
1st March 2021 at 22:32
1/6 in a jigger?
25th June 2022 at 21:35
I have Simon's jigger and I could not live without it. Best one around.
[deleted user]
2nd March 2021 at 08:20
Simon means 75ml / 2.5oz to the brim :)
Anonymous
20th January 2021 at 01:55
Thought it was too sweet, even with some bitters
7th November 2020 at 01:04
A little too sweet. Added a dash of angostura bitters to help cut through.
20th January 2021 at 19:52
Agreed. I've added a couple of optional dashes of bitters accordingly.
29th September 2020 at 20:45
The sweet vermouth takes away the grapiness of the cognac, whereas the cognac compensates for the sweetness of the sweet vermouth. A perfect balance. The taste of benedictine is more subtle and adds an overall smoother and rounder taste to the drink. Fine cocktail with a refined taste.