Fernet is an intensely bitter Italian herbal liqueur, dark brown and perfumed with dozens of roots, barks and spices, and in Italy it is sipped in thimblefuls after dinner as a digestive. Argentina, with its enormous Italian community, adopted it and then did something Italy never quite thought of: it poured it over ice and topped it with cola. The pairing is most closely tied to the university city of Córdoba, where it took off from the 1980s, and today it is drunk at barbecues, birthdays, football matches and anywhere else Argentines gather in groups of more than two.

The proportions are a matter of local pride. The most common rule of thumb is roughly three parts fernet to seven parts cola, built in a tall glass so the foam rises in a thick brown head. It tastes of mint, licorice and bitter herbs softened by the sweetness of the cola, and it is an acquired taste that many acquire very quickly.

The drink

Ingredients

• 1 cup ice cubes
• 2 oz (60 ml) fernet
• 5 oz (150 ml) cola

Method

1. Fill the tall glass to the top with ice cubes.
2. Pour the fernet over the ice.
3. Tilt the glass slightly and pour in about two thirds of the cola slowly down the side. Let the foam settle for 30 seconds, then add the rest straight down the middle to raise a thick head.
4. Give one gentle stir with the long spoon from the bottom, if you like, to blend without killing the fizz.

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