I’d like to thank Char & Stave and Bluebird Distilling, along with their PR team, for sending these with no strings attached.
Busy day today. I had some work to do, plus I needed to change the light bulbs in my microwave. You’d think that would be easy enough, right? Bulbs burn out. Manufacturers should probably give you easy access to them and maybe even tell you what replacement bulbs to buy. Sounds reasonable, doesn’t it?
Well, not so much. I spent the entire morning trying to figure out the correct parts on the manufacturer’s website. They were willing to sell the bulbs to me (though they were out of stock), but they weren’t willing to just tell me what bulbs I needed so I could buy them elsewhere. Naturally, I ended up taking the burned-out bulbs to Home Depot, comparing them to what was on the shelf, and picking out a couple that looked like they’d work. Luckily for me, they did. I’m not very happy with GE Appliances right now—it shouldn’t take all day to change two light bulbs—but whatever. Let’s just say I’ll be having a cocktail later.
Speaking of cocktails, I’m taking a closer look at a couple of cocktail ingredients tonight. These were sent to me by the producers for review purposes a couple of months ago. I’ve been sitting on them for a while, waiting for their turn to come up in the queue. Well, today their turn arrived…just in time to soothe away a frustrating day.
So, what are these ingredients? Two takes on a coffee liqueur. The Classic Coffee is exactly as it sounds—essentially a sweet cup of alcoholic cold brew. The Cafe Amaro, on the other hand, is more like a cross between the Classic Coffee and a traditional amaro. It’s nuttier and more coffee-forward than the Amaros I have in my cocktail stand, but it offers more depth of flavor than a standard coffee liqueur. Before I dive into my tasting notes, let’s see what the producer has to say about them.
Char & Stave Classic Coffee Liqueur is crafted using Char & Stave Arabica Coffee and Bluebird Distilling Vodka, one batch at a time with no artificial flavors. The spirit presents a velvety smooth mouthfeel, with savory chocolate notes up front followed by tinges of citrus, and a finish of slightly sweet dried fruits. Shines in an Espresso Martini, White Russian, or “Night Cap” (3 oz. on the rocks).
Char & Stave Cafe Amaro Coffee Liqueur is a bittersweet coffee liqueur blended with a balance of citrus and botanicals spanning Oris root, angelica, cardamom, chamomile, lemon peel, gtrapefruit peel and gentian root – made one batch at a time with no artificial flavors. Shines in a Coffee Negroni, Char n’ Tonic, and more.
All Char & Stave coffee beans are roasted in-house, with beans sourced from small farmers and microplots worldwide. Both spirits are made with Char & Stave Arabica Coffee (62% Peru Cajamarca, 20% Costa Rica Central Valley, 18% Natural Papua New Guina Wahgi Valley). After the beans are roasted, a two-day Cold Brew method is employed to ensure maximum flavor and velvety smoothness.
Let’s see how they taste, shall we?
Char & Stave Classic Coffee Coffee Liqueur
Purchase Info: This bottle was sent to me at no cost for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $34.99 for a 750 mL bottle.
Price per Drink (50 mL): $2.33
Details: 30% ABV
Nose: Rich and roasty coffee notes (think a medium to dark roast, not a bright acidic light roast)
Mouth: Sweet and chocolaty coffee notes with a hint of a burn from the alcohol.
Finish: Gentle and of medium length with notes of caramel and chocolate lingering.
Char & Stave Cafe Amaro Coffee Liqueur
Purchase Info: This bottle was sent to me at no cost for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $39.99 for a 750 mL bottle.
Price per Drink (50 mL): $2.67
Details: 30% ABV
Nose: Coffee, nutty, gentian root, and a touch of citrus.
Mouth: Coffee, caramel, and gentian root.
Finish: On the longer side of medium and bitter with notes of coffee, cardamom, and bitter citrus peel.
Thoughts:
Both of these are very nice. Super tasty. I LOVE coffee. I love it even more than bourbon. And the Classic Coffee is just like drinking an alcoholic glass of cold brew. I could easily see myself having a pour of it one lazy afternoon. The Cafe Amaro would make a good sipper if you like to sip Amaros. Not many do. I like to have an Amaro and Soda now and then but I get that I’m an unusual person in my love for bitter drinks.
But where these will shine for people that are not as weird as I am is as a cocktail ingredient. I didn’t know a recipe for a cocktail that used both coffee liqueur and bourbon so I asked ChatGPT for a couple of recipes. They are as follows:
Coffee Old Fashioned
2 oz bourbon
1 oz brewed or espresso coffee (chilled) or coffee liqueur
1 tsp maple syrup
A few dashes of bitters (optional: coffee or chocolate bitters)
The Revolver
2 oz bourbon (preferably a rye-heavy one)
0.5 oz coffee liqueur
2 dashes of orange bitters
Orange peel for garnish
The Coffee Old Fashioned is based on a recipe from Happy Honey Kitchen. The Revolver is from Serious Eats.
Both of these liqueurs work great in both of these recipes. I’m extremely happy with both. The Old Fashioned is pretty basic when using the Classic Coffee, but that’s to its benefit. The Cafe Amaro has just a little too much going on for me when used here. The Revolver is amazing with either, and I am completely floored by how well bourbon, coffee, and orange flavors pair with one another. So good. That’s the one I’m having tonight to round the rough edges off of a frustrating day.
If you want to support our work at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch that I’ve designed and/or built (tasting journals, t-shirts, stickers, pins, signs, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com. Use code BOURBONGUYREADER at checkout for 5% off any order of $50 or more.