Branca Menta (700 ml)

Fratelli Branca, founded in Milan in 1845, built its reputation on the bitter, saffron-laced Fernet Branca — then in 1963 deliberately inverted the formula's balance for Branca Menta, pushing Mentha piperita (peppermint) to the foreground while retaining the same 40-botanical base that defines the house style. The result is a liqueur that sits in deliberate tension: recognisably Fernet in its bitter, resinous scaffold, yet driven by an icy mint intensity that no classic amaro attempts at this scale.

Production follows the Fernet Branca method — cold maceration of dried herbs, roots, and spices in neutral spirit, then blending and resting in oak barrels in Branca's Milan distillery. The botanical roster includes myrrh, gentian, rhubarb, and chamomile alongside the dominant peppermint, bottled at 28% ABV — lower than Fernet Branca's 39%, calibrated to let sweetness carry the mint without stripping the bitter finish entirely.

What separates Branca Menta within the category is its dual identity: sweet enough to serve over ice as a digestif, bitter enough to function as a cocktail modifier where standard crème de menthe would collapse under complexity. Drink straight from the freezer or long over ice.