Flip

What is a flip?

The flip is the silk among drinks: spirit, sugar and a whole egg, shaken long and hard until the foam sits, with freshly grated nutmeg on top. You will search in vain for citrus in a classic flip, the drink lives on body and sweetness instead of acid.

History: from the glowing iron to cold silk

The history of the flip is well documented and starts out warm: in colonial times the flip was a hot drink of beer, rum and sugar with egg, and in the taverns it was frothed up with a glowing iron held into the drink. The iron is history, the egg stayed, and the heat gave way to a thorough chill: the modern flip is shaken ice cold and served in small glasses. The port flip with ruby port and the rum flip are the classics of the house.

What makes a flip

• The whole egg: the yolk makes body, the white makes foam, together they make the silk
• Shaken, properly long: this is where the shaker shows what it can do, more on its lead role in our shaker entry
• Nutmeg on top: the topping that belongs to a flip as much as the foam
• No citrus: the flip avoids acid, which makes it the opposite of a sour

Distinction: flip and sour

The sour balances acid and sweetness, the flip swaps the acid for the egg: body instead of freshness, silk instead of zing. Know both and you know the whole spectrum between fresh and velvety.

Remember: the sour is the formula, the fizz the sparkle, the Collins the length, the daisy the sweetness, the flip the silk, the smash the ice.

At our lounge

For everyone who likes it velvety: ask for a port flip, port, egg yolk and sugar are a team that rarely disappoints. And the nutmeg on top is a must, not decoration.