Battle of the Christmas Cocktails

Fancy yourself a bit of a mixologist over the festive season? Well we think it's time to make coffee the headline.

That’s why we’ve paired each of the coffees from our Battle of the Christmas Roasts bundle with it’s own signature cocktail – focusing on highlighting the tasting notes of our unique selection of coffees!

The Polar Espresso Martini – Christmas Roast

We had to start with a classic, our take on the Espresso Martini. Every coffee lover must have already indulged in this sweet cocktail, which takes a caffeinated spin on the traditional Martini. If you haven’t familiarised yourself with this drink in its most simple form, this is the way to become acquainted.

We have paired the Espresso Martini with our limited-edition Christmas Roast. With tasting notes of stone fruit, fudge, and cinnamon, this blend is bound to get you holly, jolly and in the Christmas spirits – literally.

Ingredients (Single Serving):

50ml vodka

25ml freshly brewed Christmas Roast espresso

25ml coffee liqueur

Method:

Affogato Martini – Finca Frailes

Typically regarded as a summer dessert, Affogato is the deliciously ingenious combination of coffee and ice-cream. However, we think that this boozy drink can pull it right back to winter, and would look perfect as a Christmas dessert or Christmas Eve treat by the fire. This sweet and creamy drink is certainly a suitable alternative to the classic.

We have paired the Affogato Martini with our sweet and rich roast: Finca Frailes. With tasting notes of stone fruit, prune, and caramel, this drink tastes like the best of all deserts you’ve ever tried – combined. Finca offers dark, rich, and sweet notes which tops off this drink perfectly.

Ingredients (Single Serving):

30ml vodka

15ml freshly brewed Finca Frailes espresso

15ml Coffee liqueur

1 scoop vanilla ice-cream

Method:

Espresso Daquiri – Adola

Moving away from vodka and amping up a more unusual cocktail, we’re suggesting the Espresso Daquiri! Typically a light and fruity cocktail, we say: where’s the coffee at? With our take on the Daquiri being spiked with a shot of espresso, we think that this is the ideal blend of fruity and floral.

We have paired the Espresso Daquiri with our fruity and floral coffee of course – Adola! With tasting notes of blueberry, red berry, and floral, this is the appropriate choice for our rum based drink. Think Strawberry Daquiri, but blueberry, and coffee.

Ingredients (Single Serving):

60ml white rum

50ml freshly brewed Adola espresso

15ml sugar syrup

Method:

Bonaparte – Jose Lopez

This is one of our more complicated cocktails and certainly one for the coffee curious: The Bonaparte. Colloquially known as Napoleon’s Cocktail, this is an interesting blend of soda water, espresso, and orange liqueur. Although not a conventional cocktail, this is certainly an option to tempt the brave and curious at your Christmas party.

We have paired the Bonaparte with the equally fruity Jose Lopez. With tasting notes of tropical fruit, red berry, and floral, Jose Lopez makes an awesome pair with the cognac. If you can get over the peculiarity of this historical drink, it’s bound to make a tasty conversation starter.

Ingredients (Single Serving):

90ml soda water

30ml freshly brewed Jose Lopez espresso

45ml cognac or orange liqueur

Method:

Espresso Martiki – Carlos Estevez

No that’s not a spelling mistake, this is the Espresso Martiki. Inspired by the Tiki culture of Polynesia, this tropical, pineapple-based cocktail is caffeinated heaven. Certainly, for those of you that love pineapple, this twist on an Espresso Martini is lively and fruity, with a subtle coffee flavour that is perfect for the newbie coffee explorer.

We have paired the Espresso Martiki with our boozy tropical roast, Carlos Estevez. With tasting notes of tropical fruit, rum, and bubble gum, it matches and balances the flavours in this cocktail with ease. Resulting in a smooth taste, and a sweet finish. 

Ingredients (Single Serving):

40ml pineapple rum

15ml coffee liqueur

25ml of freshly brewed Carlos Estevez espresso

25ml pineapple juice 

Method:

Well, we hope that there are enough options in this list to keep you satisfied and satiated over the Christmas period – ensuring that you’re keeping up with your caffeine fix! All of the coffees that we mentioned in this blog are available online here, or if you’re really stuck spoilt for choice – our Battle of the Christmas Roasts bundle has a mini 90g bag of each of these coffees, available here, so you don’t have to choose!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, one and all!

- Ben