A Visit to the Museo Branca in the Branca Distillerie in Milan

By Keane Li 

They like to call their flagship liquor the original amaro (bitter herbal liqueur) at the Branca Distillery in Milan. With a recipe dating back to 1845, it’s hard to argue with them.

Ever since Bernardino Branca created Fernet-Branca as a health tonic, it grew in popularity through exalted claims of its now-debunked curative properties. But while the amaro won’t cure you of febrifuge or cholera, many still swear by the power of the herbal concoction to soothe stomachs, ease hangovers and please the mood.



The free Museo Branca is the museum located in the Branca Distillery, located at Via Resegone, 2 in Milan. A reservation made four days in advance is required for a visit to the museum. Each tour accommodates 25 people, and with the popularity of the distillery, it’s worth booking as early as possible.

Tours are available every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. each day. Tours last for approximately an hour and 40 minutes. English tours are available only on Mondays and Fridays at 11:30 a.m. You can also contact the museum at collezione@branca.it for any questions or special accommodations.

The tour begins in the history museum where a brand ambassador (the knowledgeable Tommaso with Marco, for us) guides the group through the beginnings of the brand, back when Mr. Branca and a supposed Dr. Fernet came together to create the recipe.

Like Coca-Cola, it was touted as a tonic, and the recipe has remained unchanged since the beginning. While it’s usually enjoyed as a digestivo (an after-meal shot) in Italy, other countries, such as Argentina, drink it mixed with cola.



In San Francisco, where as much as 35 percent of the Fernet-Branca imported into the United States is consumed, it’s enjoyed with a side of ginger ale, otherwise known as a “ginger back.” Around the world, cocktails utilizing Fernet-Branca are growing in popularity, pulling down the average drinking age of the once traditional product.

The majority of the tour follows a corridor filled with artifacts and machines, from a vintage car emblazoned with the drink’s logo of an eagle over a globe (entitled “Mondo,” designed by one Leopoldo Metlicovitz in 1893) to vintage weights and scales.



Most notable of all is the showcase of the 27 herbs, roots and spices utilized to create Fernet-Branca, including, but not limited to, china, rhubarb, chamomile, cinnamon, linden, iris, saffron, zedoary, galingale and myrrh. Visitors are given the opportunity of touching and smelling each of these ingredients used to give Fernet-Branca it’s unique flavor.



Shortly after, the group is welcomed to a tasting of the amaro in the expansive tasting room. First-timers who may not be prepared for the bold flavor may want to prepare themselves for the subsequent trip into the cellar where the liquor is aged. The potent fragrance of the many herbs welcomes those who enter the barrel-filled room like a hearty slap.

The tour concludes with an optional trip to the distillery store. While Fernet-Branca and Branca Menta (the minty variation) are relatively well known products by Fernet-Branca, the company also distills and distributes other spirits as well, such as Punt e Mes, a popular Italian vermouth purchased from the Carpano family in 2001.



Other properties include Carpano Antica, Sambuca Borghetti, Grappa Candolini, Villa Branca Chianti Classico, Stravecchio Branca, Match Whisky, Sernova vodka, Tequila Sierra, Champagne Tsarine and the American classic Southern Comfort (just to name a few).

A trip to Museo Branca is a visit to part of Milan’s history. The historic amaro was birthed here, and it’s still produced in the city today. Like many of the best things in life, Fernet-Branca may be an acquired taste, but those who love it know the original fernet is still the best.

But if you’re wondering what the secret recipe is, you can forget about it, as not even the guides know the formula. For this, you’d have to ask Niccolò Branca, the Fernet-Branca president, who personally tends to the measurements during production. Such information, however, isn’t required for simply enjoying a comforting glass of one of Italy’s most famous liquors.

Author’s Bio: Keane Li is a freelance writer based in San Francisco, Hawaii and Italy. You can follow his travels on his blog, on Facebook and on Instagram.