Drink: An Old-fashioned gets a twist when Santa Cruz’s Verve Coffee Roasters gets involved.
Time has lost meaning during this long pandemic blur. Workdays sprawl into the night, Wednesdays turn to Blursdays and “I had to feed my sourdough starter” has become an entirely reasonable excuse for tardy Zoom calls. So if you’re asking yourself that existential question — do I need more coffee or happy hour? — clearly, it’s time to consider coffee cocktails. Santa Cruz’s Verve Coffee Roasters certainly thinks so, because it’s released a slew of how-tos that pair its brews with booze, from the O.G. Goody to a Nitro Old-fashioned. And there are boozeless options, too. Verve’s recipes call for Verve coffee, of course. Those brews can be ordered online or purchased at the company’s coffee bars in Palo Alto and Santa Cruz, but you can craft a drink with whatever good coffee you have on hand. It’s a pandemic. Pantry substitutions are what we do these days.
THE O.G. GOODY
Serves 2 INGREDIENTS
½ teaspoon honey ½ teaspoon hot water 6ounces Flash Brew The Original
4 thin slices serrano pepper Pinch of salt
3 ounces gin, optional Chilled sparkling blueberry juice
Garnish: 2 fresh basil
leaves DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, combine the honey and hot water to create a simple syrup, stirring gently until completely dissolved. Let cool.
Add a few large ice cubes to your cocktail shaker. Add the coffee, serrano peppers, honey simple syrup, a pinch of salt and the gin, if you’re using it. Shake vigorously for 15 seconds.
Place a large ice cube in each of two rocks glasses. Strain the mixture into the glasses and top off with sparkling blueberry juice. Gently clasp two fresh basil leaves between your hands to express the oils and garnish each glass.
NITRO OLDFASHIONED
Serves 1 INGREDIENTS
4 ounces Verve Nitro Flash Brew Coffee 2 ounces Bulleit Bourbon
½ ounce simple syrup 2 dashes orange blossom water
1 dash aromatic bitters
Garnish: 2 dark maraschino cherries, orange peel and rosemary
DIRECTIONS
In a shaker, combine the coffee, bourbon, simple syrup, orange blossom water and bitters. Add ice, then shake vigorously about a dozen times. Strain into your best-looking glassware. Garnish with maraschino cherries, orange peel and a sprig of rosemary.
SAKARO SUNSET
Serves 2 INGREDIENTS
3 ounces dark rum, optional
6 to 8 ounces ginger beer
6 ounces Flash Brew Single Origin: Sakaro
2 ounces peach or apricot nectar 2 ounces cherry juice
Garnish: Cinnamon sticks
DIRECTIONS
Fill each Collins glass with 3 large Ice cubes. (If you have smaller ice cubes, fill each glass ¾ full.)
If you are using the optional rum, pour 3 ounces of ginger beer into each glass, followed by 1½ ounces of rum. If you’re skipping the rum, pour 4 ounces of ginger beer into each glass.
Pour 1 ounce of stone fruit nectar over the ginger beer in each glass, followed by 3 ounces of coffee.
Hold a bar spoon or teaspoon close to the drink surface with the back of the spoon facing up. Slowly pour 1 ounce of cherry juice onto the back of the spoon so the liquid flows gently onto the drink’s surface and floats. Repeat with the second drink.
Garnish each drink with a cinnamon stick, allowing ½ inch to stay above the rim. Carefully use a lighter to ignite the tip. Allow to burn for a few seconds, then gently fan out the flame and serve.