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The 9 Best Coffee Cocktail Recipes To Make in 2022

Mark Stock
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Hats off to the genius who first mixed caffeine with alcohol. The combination often works wonders, filing down the bitterness of coffee until it becomes a well-integrated and enjoyable cocktail.

Better, coffee cocktails are great year-round. And because there are various options, from standard joe to coffee liqueurs and coffee beers, there’s room for all kinds of experimentation. That’s not to say everything just magically blends well with java. Because coffee is built around a backbone of earthy, roasted, often nutty notes, you can’t just go throwing pink wine or any old infused vodka at the stuff. Think complementary notes, like coconut, chocolate, toffee, and more.

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Here are 9 outstanding coffee cocktails to try.

Bossk’s Banana Blaster

This cocktail utilizes banana, an under-utilized ingredient when it comes to mixology. The result is a decidedly tropical drink with a kick of caffeine.

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Bossk's Banana Blaster cocktail
Image used with permission by copyright holder
  • .5 oz. dark creme de cacao
  • .5 oz. Mr. Black Cold Brew Coffee Liqueur
  • .75 oz. The Perfect Puree Banana Puree, thawed
  • 3 oz. coffee

Method: Add all ingredients into a coffee cup. Garnish with whipped cream, yellow sprinkles, and a banana chip.

Three-Card Monte

A classy coffee cocktail indeed, the three-card monte benefits from the eucalyptus, citrus, and vanilla bean notes of one of Italy’s most famous amaro options.

Three-card monte cocktail
Elliot Montero
  • 1 oz. Mr. Black Cold Brew Liqueur
  • 1 oz. brandy
  • 1 oz. Amaro Montenegro
  • Chartreuse or genepy rinse

Method: Stir and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with orange peel.

White Russian

Sure, you can go the way of Lebowski and mix up a mediocre White Russian with the expected ingredients, but we prefer something a bit classier, like this riff on the classic cocktail.

White Russian cocktail
Dan Baker/The Manual
  • 1.5 oz. Absolut Elyx Vodka
  • 1 oz. Caffe Lolita Coffee Liqueur
  • 1 oz. half-and-half
  • 3 coffee beans for garnish

Method: Combine the vodka and liqueur in glass and fill with ice cubes, stirring briefly. Layer half-and-half on top and garnish with the coffee beans.

The Double Shot Martini

Milk works fine with this martini, but we suggest the heft of half-and-half for a little extra richness and to really fuse the tequila and coffee notes.

Double shot martini
Image used with permission by copyright holder
  • 5 parts Avión Espresso Tequila
  • 1 part milk or half-and-half

Method: Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker. Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with 1-3 espresso beans.

Mole y Avión Espresso

Essentially hot chocolate for grown-ups, this easy-to-assemble drink will warm your soul.

Image used with permission by copyright holder
  • 2 oz. Avión Espresso
  • 1 oz. premium hot chocolate
  • Fresh whipped cream and mint leaf for garnish

Method: Combine ingredients in glass and heat. Garnish with fresh whipped cream and a mint leaf.

The Afterhours

Sometimes, you just want a few sips of something to cap a meal or an evening with friends, especially if it packs the kind of punch that tequila and espresso do.

Afterhours cocktail
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  • 2 parts Avión Anejo
  • 1 part Avión Espresso Tequila

Method: Pour ingredients into a rocks glass over ice and stir.

Paradise Stout

The right kind of sherry can blend beautifully with coffee, as is the case with this layered cocktail.

Image used with permission by copyright holder
  • 3 oz. Sam Adams Nitro Coffee Stout
  • 1 oz. Jamaican Rum
  • 1 oz. Pedro Ximénez Sherry
  • 2 dashes chocolate bitters
  • 1 whole egg

Method: Dry shake, hard shake, and strain into snifter. Top with nitro stout. Garnish with grated nutmeg.

Nitro Coffee Float

An excellent evening sipper, this dessert-in-a-glass blends all the great things — beer, amaro, and coffee.

Nitro coffee float cocktail
Image used with permission by copyright holder
  • 4-6 oz. Sam Adams Nitro Coffee Stout
  • .75 oz. Frangelico
  • .75 oz. Braulio (or favorite amaro)
  • 1 oz. cold brew coffee
  • Ice cream and condiments

Method: Shake and strain into Pilsner glass. Top 3/4 of the way with Sam Adams Nitro Coffee Stout. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Garnish with crushed hazelnuts and/or whipped cream, sprinkles, cherry, and chocolate.

Turbo Prop

This coffee cocktail gets a kiss on the cheek from the Mediterranean thanks to the addition of Aperol, along with some added floral notes via rose water.

Turbo prop cocktail
Stephen Kurpinsky
  • 1 oz. Mr. Black Cold Brew Liqueur
  • 1 oz. bourbon
  • 1 oz. Aperol
  • 1 oz. lemon juice
  • 1 dash rose water

Method: Shake and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with lemon zest.

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Mark Stock
Mark Stock
Contributor
Mark Stock is a writer from Portland, Oregon. He fell into wine during the Recession and has been fixated on the stuff since…
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