Booze and Brew Favorite Coffee Liqueur
My Favorite Coffee Liqueur – by Jonah Engler
I love coffee liqueur. It combines my two favorite drinks: coffee, and booze! What’s not to like?
There are many types of coffee liqueurs on the market; below, I have broken down some of my favorites.
Kahlúa Original Coffee Liqueur
Kahlúa is the go-to coffee liqueur for many. It contains rum, coffee, vanilla, and sugar. The sugar and vanilla help balance that strong coffee taste. It contains 20% alcohol content. According to Kahlúa’s website, it can take seven years to make one bottle of Kahlúa! Most of this time is spent harvesting the Arabica coffee beans. It only takes me a couple of weeks to get through one bottle, but, seven years is still worth it. It is sweeter than Tia Maria, so if I’m mixing in other alcohols to create a really potent cocktail, I would use Kahlúa.
Tia Maria is made with Jamaican rum, vanilla, and coffee. It also contains 20% alcohol content. It’s less sweet than Kahlúa, which makes it smoother to drink because it’s not overpoweringly sweet. If i’m not making a cocktail and I’m just trying to drink coffee liqueur straight, I would opt for Tia Maria. Jamaica truly makes the best rum, and Tia Maria is proof of that.
Sheridan’s Coffee Liqueur
I LOVE the bottle. It’s aesthetically pleasing as the coffee and cream are in two separate compartments in the bottle. It contains 15.5% alcohol content, so it’s not as strong as Tia Maria and Kahlúa. There are two different nozzles on the bottle cap, so, in theory, you could cover one side of the bottle if you only want the coffee or the cream. I wouldn’t recommend this approach – it’s meant to be combined. But, to each their own! Sheridan’s contains coffee and whiskey on one side and white milk chocolate liqueur on the other side. Yum.
Patron XO Café (the Jonah Engler choice)
Patron XO Café is made of Patrón Silver Tequila and coffee. If you prefer tequila to whiskey or rum, you will find this coffee liqueur more enjoyable. It is stronger and less sweet than other liqueurs. The tequila is of high quality, so it is a different experience. It contains 35% alcohol content, making it much stronger than any of the other options. While you don’t need a chase or mixer to enjoy this drink, it might help it go down smoother!
Bailey’s is an Irish whiskey mixed with coffee-flavored cream. I love Bailey’s because the taste is reminiscent of Kahlúa, but it’s much more comfortable to drink. It goes down smoothly. Bailey’s is nice to add to your coffee hot or cold. One thing I like to do is make frozen iced coffee and top it off with Bailey’s. There are now multiple flavors as well: Original, Strawberries & Cream, Almond Milk, and more. If you’re vegan, this one’s for you.
Which coffee liqueur I buy depends on the occasion or the mood I am in. But, if I had to choose just one coffee liqueur for the rest of time, I would select Tia Maria. It’s a well-rounded, full-bodied drink and I like how it’s not too sweet, giving you a choice as to whether you want to make it sweeter. As such, it’s more versatile for cocktails. And, it just tastes great. Happy drinking (safely)!
