TOP 10 tea and coffee liqueurs – recipes and instructions

Tea and coffee have been the subject of heated debate for a long time. In an endless debate about the superiority of one drink over another, an endless number of arguments are given. Among them are aspects of doping, and the impact on health, and social functions, and aesthetics, and even national character. We, in turn, decided not to breed controversy, but simply take and prepare liquor. A dozen liqueurs from tea and coffee. Draw won!

Like the similarities between wine and tea, which I wrote about in a previous article, tea and coffee also have a lot in common. First of all, these are two phenomena of fermentation, which enriches the taste and chemical composition of any raw material. Just as fermentation transforms grapes into wine and barley malt into beer, it turns the fruit of the Coffea tree and the leaves of Camellia sinesis into super-nutrient foods that have become the world’s most valuable agricultural commodities.

A few words about the characters. Unlike imitations of Kalua coffee liqueur, where instant coffee is often taken as the basis, it is better to use coffee beans for our tea-coffee battle. It is better to take grains of medium roast – heavily roasted coffee contains much less aromatic components and goes into bitterness. You don’t need to grind the grains – suffer from filtering – it’s better to grind them with a hammer right before insisting.

In the article on wine-tea tinctures mentioned above, I talked a little about the choice of tea for alcoholic delights. Leaf Chinese tea gives the freshest (if the leaf is fresh, that is, tea is less than a year old) taste and pure infusion, but in the absence of access to such wealth, tea bags will do: where 10-15-20 g of leaf tea is indicated, take 4- 6-8 tea bags. But this, of course, will be an unequal replacement and the taste of the liquor will noticeably become poorer. You can get ideas for other tea alcoholic drinks in our material on tea liqueurs, where the Slovak aperitif-digestif TatraTea was taken as a reference.

You can judge for yourself the economic feasibility of most recipes below, but large portions are due to short maceration periods. Because it works. For an experiment, you can reduce the weight of coffee and tea leaves by increasing the steeping time, but the results can vary greatly. The same is true with the alcohol base – gin, rum and other “elite” can be replaced with ordinary vodka or high-quality moonshine, or you can be involved in the process and cook them yourself. For example, to make real rum from molasses or to distill gin, thus enriching the liqueurs with a mass of taste semitones. The experiment is not a vice!

Coffee liqueur “Viennese Joe”

Coffee is a serious business on the Danube. The menu of an ordinary coffee house in Vienna usually includes at least two dozen of its varieties, and each has its own unique form of serving. Some of them are accompanied by a portion of flavored alcohol. Viennese Joe is inspired by Pharisäer, an old German coffee drink served at Vienna’s Central coffee house in the Innere Stadt, a wonderful blend of aromatic coffee with whipped cream, a small glass of rum and cold water to flush the receptors. The choice of cream can be sprinkled with cinnamon or cocoa. Since the cream will peel off as the liquor matures, and the shelf life will noticeably decrease, it is better to add it at the time of serving.

Coarsely grind coffee beans and pour into a liter jar. Add broken cinnamon sticks and pour everything over with rum. Mix thoroughly, close the jar tightly and leave in a dark, cool place for 3-5 days, until the infusion acquires the dominant taste and aroma of coffee (start tasting after 3 days). Strain, filter and pour into a clean jar. Add simple sugar syrup, wait 2-3 weeks and you can try. Store in a dark, cool cabinet, consume within 1 year. To serve, mix 60 ml of liqueur with one or two teaspoons of fresh cream.

Recipe suggestion: replace rum with fruit brandy, sugar syrup with a can (400 ml) of condensed milk, reduce the number of cinnamon sticks to one and you will get a wonderful coffee and milk liqueur a la latte.

Brulot coffee liqueur

Café brûlot is a classic Creole warming drink especially popular in New Orleans. Brûlot can be compared with a hussar zhenka (from the French brûlot means “burnt”), but instead of champagne and rum, brandy and coffee are used here, fairly seasoned with spices. As the brandy burns in a bowl of orange peel, cloves, and cinnamon, a fork is used to pry off the spiral of the peel, through which fresh coffee is slowly poured. The presentation and taste of this drink is remembered for a long time, and in this orange-coffee liqueur they will stay with you forever. And it’s much easier to cook.

Coarsely grind coffee and cinnamon stick. Mix all ingredients, except syrup, in a jar of suitable volume, mix vigorously and close tightly. Leave the jar in a dark, cool place for 3-5 days, until the liquid has absorbed enough from both coffee and orange peel – after 3 days, start trying. Strain, filter and mix with sugar syrup. Withstand 1-2 weeks and you can start tasting. Store in a dark cabinet for up to 1 year. The liqueur tastes great warm from small coffee cups.

Simple caramelized syrup. Melt 1 cup of cane sugar in a thick bowl until liquid caramel. Then carefully add 2 cups of simple sugar syrup and continue to stir for about a minute until the caramel becomes liquid again. Strain the syrup through a sieve into a heat-resistant measuring cup and add boiling water to make up to 2 cups. Refrigerate and use within XNUMX months.

Coffee liqueur “White Russian”

Named after the classic cocktail of vodka, coffee liqueur and cream, this is the perfect cocktail in a bottle. Creamy brown sugar syrup enhances the roasted coffee motifs. A good ingredient to soften a cup of coffee.

Mix roughly crushed coffee with vodka in a jar of a suitable volume, close tightly and leave for 3-5 days in a dark, cool place. Strain, filter and mix with syrup. Keep refrigerated. After a couple of days, you can try the liquor, but you need to drink it within 1 month. After 2 weeks in the refrigerator, the cream of the syrup may collect on the surface of the drink. This is solved by banal mixing. Tastes well shaken with ice and sprinkled with grated nutmeg.

Creamy Brown Sugar Syrup. Combine 1 cup heavy cream, 1 cup dark brown cane sugar, ¼ cup ground coffee, and ¼ cup confectionery cocoa powder in a heavy-walled saucepan. Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring frequently, remove from heat and let steep for 10 minutes. Strain, add a jar (400 ml) of condensed milk and refrigerate. Use within 2 weeks.

Coffee liqueur “FunduKo”

There are not many fans of flavored coffee, but coffee with hazelnuts usually conquers everyone. The sweet, nutty flavor of roasted hazelnuts brings out the natural bitterness of coffee without changing the overall flavor profile. In liqueur, this delicate balance is achieved in a more natural way, without the use of chemical solvents that are commonly used to flavor coffee beans.

Coarsely grind the coffee and hazelnuts, cut the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Place all this in a jar of a suitable volume and pour vodka. Close the jar tightly and leave in a dark, cool place for 3-5 days. When you like the taste, strain the tincture into a clean container, add brown cane sugar syrup (it will be generally fire with Muscovado!) and honey, mix thoroughly and let it rest for 2-3 weeks. Remove from the sediment, filter and you can try. Consume within a year.

Instructions for use: mix 60 ml of Coffee Nut liqueur in a large cup, add 120 ml of freshly brewed coffee, garnish with whipped cream with a pinch of ground cinnamon. Mmmmm!

Coffee liqueur “MOKKA”

Mocha (or Moko) means many things: 1) chocolate coffee drink; 2) a port city in Yemen, which is famous for its coffee market; 3) coffee bean variety; and 4) the stovetop espresso maker, first made by Bialetti Industries in 1933. This coffee-chocolate liqueur (let’s call it a rarer interpretation of the translation of the Yemenite Mokha / Mocha – Mokka) could be inspired by any of the above. And if you decide to cook it with real Yemeni grain Moka, you will only support the overall concept.

Similar to the relationship between coffee and roasted hazelnuts, coffee and cocoa beans (look for crushed roasted cocoa beans in health food stores) share many flavor characteristics, including a balance of acidity and bitterness, roasted flavors from fire, and an affinity for sugar, which makes them especially pleasant in this liqueur.

Coarsely crush coffee and cocoa, pour into a liter jar and add alcohol. Mix thoroughly, close the jar tightly and put away for 3-5 days in a dark, cool place. When the taste suits you, strain through a sieve, filter and add the syrup, boiled from equal parts of water and good quality brown cane sugar. Wait 2-3 weeks and you can try. Store in a dark cabinet, consume within 6 months.

Instructions for use: shake in a shaker with ice – an instant Mocha Martini!

Tea Liqueur “White Fig”

White tea has a delicate aroma of meadow flowers, which is enhanced here by light Turkish figs. This delicate combination can only exist in the arms of alcohol – in the form of tea, this balance is fleeting. As an alcohol base, it is better to use a more neutral London dry gin – jenever-like gins with more expressive aromatics will clog the delicate taste of tea and figs. You can make this gin yourself or try using vodka with a little botanical gin added instead.

Mix gin, white tea (the original recipe indicated 1,5 cups of such tea, I got just 15 grams of Bai Mu Dan) and chopped figs in a jar of a suitable volume. Close the jar tightly and leave in a dark, cool place for 5 days. Strain, filter and mix with sugar syrup. Let it rest for 2-3 weeks and you can try. Store in a dark, cool cabinet, consume within 1 year.

Instructions for use: A wonderful ingredient for a flawless Martini or an ice-cold glass of lemonade.

Tea liqueur “Green honey”

Matcha or Matcha, powdered high quality green tea, is the centerpiece of the Japanese tea ceremony. The technology for grinding steamed and dried green tea was developed during the Chinese Song Dynasty (960-1279). The practice of whisking matcha with a whisk and thoughtfully consuming the resulting drink has become a whole ritual among Zen Buddhists.

Today, powdered tea has become a fashionable trend among people who are concerned about a healthy lifestyle and nutrition in particular. It has been added as a flavoring/coloring agent to soba noodles, ice cream, candies, and numerous confectionery products. Matcha is valued primarily for its enormous concentration of the antioxidant EGCG. And what color! Liqueur “Green Honey” turned out to be a beautiful bright green, apple shade, with a light grassy aroma of green tea. Real Zen!

Mix vodka, green tea and matcha, lemon zest and honey in a suitable jar. Mix well, close the jar tightly and leave in a dark, cool place for 3-5 days. After 3 days, be sure to start tasting and straining, when green tea begins to clearly dominate in taste, but not to bitterness. Let rest for 2-3 weeks, remove from the sediment and you can try. Store in a dark cabinet for up to 1 year.

Instructions for use: Serve in a glass over ice, garnish with a lime wedge, or warm slightly like inexpensive sake. Tastes great with ginger ale.

Tea liqueur “Smoked”

The tea leaves of Zheng Shan Xiao Zhun, better known in Europe as Lapsang Souchong, are fermented according to the technology of red teas and then dried with pine wood smoke, giving them a very intense smoky and resinous taste. In this fiery red liqueur, the smokiness of the tea is accentuated by Spanish smoked paprika and a spicy spicy smoky black pepper. The overall effect is a knockout; use to re-smoke a Manhattan or any other scotch cocktail.

Mix vodka, scotch, tea, paprika and black pepper in a suitable jar. Mix thoroughly, close the jar tightly and leave in a dark, cool place for 3-5 days. After 3 days, start tasting and strain when the taste approaches the desired saturation. Filter, add simple brown cane sugar syrup, let rest for 2-3 weeks and you are ready to taste. Store in a dark cabinet, consume within 1 year.

Instructions for use: Mix Smoked Mary or Volcano. Smoked Mary: Pour 60 ml of our smoked liqueur, 120 ml of vegetable juice and a couple of Tabasco dashes into a highball with ice, stir and garnish with a lime wedge. Volcano: Shake 30 ml of smoked tequila with 60 ml of silver tequila and a couple of dashes of chocolate bitter in a shaker with ice, pour into a chilled cocktail glass with smoked salt crust, garnish with chili pepper.

Tea liqueur “Moroccan mint”

Maghreb-style mint tea (green tea with mint leaves) is a drink of hospitality throughout North Africa, always served to guests. He is always sweet. Like matcha, serving mint tea is highly ritualized, especially in Morocco. There it is necessarily brewed by the head of the family, pouring a fragrant infusion from a cast teapot with a long spout, holding it at an impressive height above the guest’s glass. A cascade of tea that reaches its destination without spilling a drop is the equivalent of a flawlessly executed performance. The virtuosity and refreshing effect of Moroccan mint tea are perfectly captured by this exquisite liqueur.

Mix vodka, tea, mint and honey in a suitable jar. Mix thoroughly, close the jar tightly and leave in a dark, cool place for 3-5 days. When the taste seems saturated, strain the infusion, filter and mix with simple sugar syrup to taste. Store in a dark cabinet, consume within 1 year.

Instructions for use: In the summer heat, mix a serving of refreshing liqueur with ice and a lime wedge.

Tea liqueur “Tannin badass”

Tannins, which are part of some plants, bind and precipitate proteins and alkaloids, protect plants from being eaten by animals, and act as a natural insecticide. When you drink tea, red wine, or certain fruit juices (particularly grape and apple), the tannins in them make your mouth feel dry. In excess, this reaction can be unpleasant, but if it is controlled, our brain will interpret this dryness in a different way, making the liquid in tea, juice or wine more refreshing. The tannins in Tannin Badass are provided by red tea leaves and persimmons (Heart-shaped persimmons of the Khachiya variety are recommended here), especially persimmons, whose immature fruits are very rich in them.

In a jar of a suitable volume, mix vodka, tea, persimmon cut into medium cubes and cocoa. Mix thoroughly, close the jar tightly and leave in a dark, cool place for 3-5 days. While maceration is taking its course, brew a simple syrup from brewed black tea of ​​medium strength and sugar: mix, heat until sugar is completely dissolved, do not bring to a boil. When the macerate begins to “grab” the tongue with its astringency, it must be filtered, filtered and mixed with the cooled tea syrup. After 2-3 weeks of rest, you can try the liquor. Store in a dark cabinet for up to 1 year.

Instructions for use: mix a refreshing gin and tonic or a screwdriver with the liquor.

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