What I’m drinking right now

An exceptional coffee liqueur and more

What are you drinking right now? Did you already make a batched Concord Negroni or an easy blackberry jam margarita or an amaretto sour with apple brandy? Maybe it’s time for a Tipperary or a Penicillin. (Should you make one with blue cheese liqueur? I dunno. But the pun is right there.)

Last week I launched two episodes of my new cooking podcast—there are so many fun tips and dinner ideas from cookbook author Betty Liu in this conversation and from Caro Chambers in the second show. I’ll have another for you every Friday—please do click follow/subscribe so you don’t miss it!

Booze report

I’ve been testing dozens of recipes and variations for a (regrettably) long article about White Russians—I’ll share it when it’s finally published and I can finally empty my fridge of heavy cream and heavy cream substitutes.

Fridge space issues aside, the project has afforded me the opportunity to taste a bunch of new-to-me coffee liqueurs. And I can’t recommend the two bottlings from Firelit Spirits enough.

Their flagship is made by cold-brewing coffee—the roaster changes with each 900-bottle batch—then blending it into a brandy and coffee infusion. This 30% ABV version is a fantastic after-dinner sip; it’s roasty but not ashy like some coffee liqueurs, and nearly as dry as espresso, with a subtle warming character from the brandy.

They also offer a wildly delicious 40% ABV version called F-80 that packs a coffee wallop—it’s bold enough to stand up to anything; just keep in mind that you may need to sweeten the drink since this stuff is so low in sugar.

Every year as we roll into the holidays, folks often ask me what bottle of Scotch is truly giftworthy. One recent gem for lovers of the peaty stuff: the 15th annual release of Bruichladdich Octomore: the 15.2 bottling is just gorgeous stuff, that smoky flavor wrapping around stone fruit, citrus peel, and creamy caramel.

Is it in the everyday budget? No, ma’am. But we’re not talking Pappy money either. (I promise more affordable gift recommendations as we get deeper into fall, but if you need something now under $50, the Compass Box Glasgow Blend is a good choice.)

N/A

I love to keep at least one St. Agrestis Phony Negroni around, but it’s nice to have a range of pre-mixed non-alcoholic cocktails on hand to offer guests. The new canned Superclasico from Casamara Club—a brand that also makes really lovely botanical seltzers—is so eye-catching (think Italian racecar) that everyone at the block party asked me about them. Juicy red currant flavors are cut with a bitter edge—juniper but also orris root, kola nut, and chinotto—all wrapped up with allspice, clove, and vanilla. 

Also on the nonalcoholic front, I recently sampled Spindrift’s unsweetened Nojito (that’s an affiliate link but you should be able to find these pretty widely)—it’s quite crisp and refreshing, with enough cooling mint to feel like you couldn’t have just matched it by squeezing lime in your seltzer. At the moment you receive this letter, I’ll be hiking in 100-degree(?!) northern California, and one of these would be just about perfect for cracking open at the end of the day.