The Cocktail CrafterIf you’re looking for an Espresso Martini that leans more into the coffee and avoids the usual sweetness, this is a version that keeps everything in balance without overcomplicating it. By using a less sweet coffee liqueur and a small amount of Dutch cacao, you get a more coffee-forward Espresso Martini while still keeping the drink clean and recognizable.
Espresso Martini
Equipment
- 1 shaker
- 1 Hawthorne strainer
- 1 Jigger
Ingredients
- 30 ml vodka
- 20 ml Herencia de Plata Coffee Liqueur can be substituted with other coffee liqueurs; adjust sugar syrup depending on sweetness
- 10 ml Dutch cacao
- 4 ml semi rich sugar syrup use slightly less than a bar spoon
- 30 ml fresh espresso
- 3 coffee beans garnish
Instructions
- Prepare a fresh espresso and let it sit briefly so it is not boiling hot.
- Add vodka, coffee liqueur, Dutch cacao, sugar syrup, and espresso into a shaker.
- Fill with ice and shake hard until the outside of the shaker begins to frost.
- Strain into a chilled coupe or martini glass using a Hawthorne strainer.
- Garnish with three coffee beans.
My Take on an Espresso Martini
This started from finding most standard Espresso Martini recipes a bit too sweet, especially when using something like Kahlúa.
I wanted something that leaned more into the coffee while still keeping the drink smooth and easy to drink.
Switching to Herencia makes a noticeable difference. It’s less sweet, slightly stronger, and more coffee-forward, which means you don’t need to rely as much on sugar to hold the drink together.
The Dutch cacao helps round things out. It adds a light cacao note without changing the structure of the drink.
It ends up in a place that feels more balanced, while still being recognizably an Espresso Martini.
How to Make an Espresso Martini (In Detail)
Start with the espresso. It needs to be fresh, but shouldn’t be boiling hot.
If you shake it straight away, you’re making things harder for yourself. Let it sit for a bit so it cools down slightly. It doesn’t take long, but it makes the whole process easier to control.
When it comes to shaking an Espresso Martini, you’re trying to chill the drink properly while building enough texture for the foam to hold. It’s the same kind of balance as any shaken drink, just more noticeable here.
Shake it hard, and keep going until the shaker is fully frosted. Not starting to, but completely cold to the touch. It’s very hard to overshake an Espresso Martini, so you can be aggressive with it.
Ice in the shaker doesn’t matter too much, anything from your freezer will do. Where it does matter is how hard you shake. If you’re not putting enough energy into it, the drink will feel thin and the foam won’t hold.
There’s also the option of using a spindle mixer with a bit of crushed ice. That’s something I picked up while working at Boilerman for Jörg Meyer. It gives you a more even, integrated foam, but the idea is the same.
Strain into a chilled coupe or martini glass using a Hawthorne strainer.
Balancing the Espresso Martini
This Espresso Martini is meant to sit in a more balanced, slightly less sweet space.
If it’s too sweet, reduce the sugar syrup. With a less sweet coffee liqueur, it doesn’t take much to push it too far.
If it’s not sweet enough, add a small amount more syrup and adjust gradually.
If the drink feels off, it’s often the espresso. Different coffees will behave differently, so that’s something you may need to adjust around.
Base Spirit Ideas
Even though it is usually made with vodka, it works well with other base spirits.
Rum is the easiest place to start. It adds natural sweetness and changes the feel of the drink quite a bit. If you go that route, you can usually leave out the sugar syrup entirely.
Lighter rums will keep things fairly clean, while heavier styles push it into something a bit richer.
The structure holds up to small changes.
Garnish
Three coffee beans. There’s not a lot to be said.
At this point it’s part of the drink. It finishes an Espresso Martini off cleanly.
A Bit of Espresso Martini History
The Espresso Martini is generally credited to Dick Bradsell in London during the 1980s.
The story goes that a guest asked for something to “wake me up and fuck me up,” which led to the combination of vodka, espresso, coffee liqueur, and sugar.
Since then the Espresso Martini has become a modern classic, usually adjusted depending on sweetness and coffee strength.
Final Thoughts
This is a simple take Espresso Martini, but it’s easy to push it too far in one direction.
If you keep the balance in check, it ends up smooth, slightly richer, and more coffee-forward than the standard version.
It’s straightforward enough that you’ll actually make it, which is probably the most important part.