Refreshing on a hot summer morning, after lunch, or even while taking a stroll, Cold Brew coffee has emerged from its coffee shop confines to cameo in cocktail bars.
Hot on the heels of the Espresso Martini boom, coffee cocktails and mocktails have surged in popularity, with brands and bartenders expanding on formats, flavours, and sourcing practices. In Australia, sparkling cocktails abound, while Cold Brew cocktails prevail in Tokyo and have started to take over Hong Kong.
Innovative mixologists infuse coffee in new cocktails, inspiring ready-to-drink product development with endless opportunities. Alcohol has boosted the occasions and times of day for coffee consumption, while alcohol-free drinks containing Cold Brew as a mixer have become more standard year-round. Coffee lovers usually turn to coffee shops to satisfy their Cold Brew cravings, but now an alternative allows them to concoct a Cold Brew at home in no time.
The Cold Brew Gin & Tonic is a straightforward cocktail that combines the sweet notes of Cold Brew coffee with a timeless classic. Alternatively, the Cold Brew Mojito couples the delicate aromas of Cold Brew coffee with the intensity of fresh mint in this barista twist on the famous Caribbean cocktail. Or the Cold Brew Negroni adds the traditional Italian gin, vermouth, and Campari to a Cold Brew base, undercutting the drink’s bitterness with refreshing lusciousness. And the Cold Brew to Mix feature isn’t limited to cocktails; coffee lovers can prepare creative cafe-style drinks like a Salted Caramel Cold Brew.
Perhaps preparing these coffee and cold brew cocktails at home will mark the start of coffee’s “fifth wave”?
