Mixing Addictions - Coffee and Alcohol

Mixing Addictions – Coffee and Alcohol

There has a been a renaissance in mixing coffee and alcoholic beverages. Coffee producers are aging green coffee beans in used whiskey, bourbon, and wine barrels to create unique flavors. Bartenders are mixing bourbon, whiskey, tequila, vodka, and liquors with brewed coffee and espresso to create unique cocktails. (This renaissance has created an issue for at least one of our customers, who complained that he couldn’t taste any bourbon in our Bourbon Pointu Laurina variety).

There are two interesting new scotches on the market from The Macallan, which mimic the taste of coffee. One is named, Intense Arabica, with tasting notes of dark chocolate, espresso, raisin, tiramisu, blackberry, and vanilla. The other is named, Smooth Arabica, and has tasting notes of Americano coffee, raisins, cherries, “soft spices,” and walnut. However, neither of these scotches was produced from and do not contain any coffee.

A variation on coffee-alcohol beverages is now prohibited in the United States. Prior to 2010, several alcoholic beverages were being sold, mostly to young buyers, with added caffeine. One malt beverage contained the equivalent of three cans of beer and three cups of coffee in a 24 ounce can. In 2010, the FDA issued a warning to the manufacturers that adding caffeine to alcoholic malt beverages was unsafe and could result in seizure of their products. All the manufacturers ceased adding caffeine to their products.

Supermarkets and liquor stores are stocking several new coffee-alcohol drinks in cans and bottles.

So, if a coffee high isn’t enough, you can always spice it up with a little alcohol.

Bon Appetit