(Note: As there will be with most of these recipe posts, scroll down to the bottom to ignore all the personal crap that only we as writers care about and everyone on the internet decries when looking for recipes. But… this is my site, so my personal crap stays.)
Flavored whiskeys have, historically, been always iffy for me. It may be the fact that my first experiences with them are the cheapest, sugary-est, bottom shelf-est iterations out there (because college), but so many quite literally have left a bad taste in my mouth over the years. When I was in grad school (Round 1, Montana), Fireball was new on the market and as a poor grad student — and this is not something I’m proud of — would buy it by the pint and mix it with Sprite or other sodas.
Remember, not proud of that. I liked the slogan “Tastes like heaven, burns like hell” and at that time in my life I wasn’t exactly picky with what I was drinking. (Read: I’d drink anything and copious amounts of it while telling myself it was to stave off a Montana winter when it was more just me not being in control of myself, but that’s for another essay at another time). Thankfully, once I left Montana, I’ve only had a few select experiences with Fireball since (one in which I lost a sandal walking home), but for the most part, have successfully avoided it. What I found time and again is, yes, a flavored whiskey should taste like the flavor it is purporting to be, but it should also taste like, you know, whiskey. Most do not.
Skip ahead, skip ahead, and now it feels like we’re seeing more and more flavored whiskey products hitting the market than I remember seeing before. Myriad flavors seem to occupy the shelves now, from standards like cinnamon or ginger to newer combinations, like peanut butter (okay, Skrewball and its competition aren’t that new anymore) and coffee. That’s how I was introduced to Kentucky Coffee.
Kentucky Coffee is a 33% ABV spirit made from “Kentucky Whiskey & Rich Coffee” and is produced in Bardstown, KY. A quick taste on its own gives off coffee on the nose and a hint of whiskey on the palate. The most prominent flavor I got was maple syrup, which I assume was in some way involved in the sweetening process. I proceeded to dump the rest of my pour into my coffee and it was great. The sweetness is nice with plain black coffee and not overwhelming. I’d only be able to have one — I’m usually a straight bourbon in my coffee kind of person — but for those that usually use sweetener or flavored creamer, this would be an admirable substitution.
Anyway, the cocktail.
Originally proposed as a shot, I did not want to do that, so I added a few ingredients to both make it a sipper and make it less sweet (added ingredients are italicized). I’m sure it’s lovely as-is, but as-is wasn’t for me in this case.
Roasted Toasted Coconut, Modified
- 1 oz Kentucky Coffee
- .25 oz Amaretto
- .25 oz Coconut Rum
- 2.5 oz Cold Brew Coffee
- 2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
Method: Add ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake. Strain into a glass, and garnish with a pinch of toasted coconut flakes.
On its own, the original would’ve been way too sweet for me, even as a shot. I wanted to make it more bitter and make it something that would be sippable instead of shootable. I thought about adding soda to disperse the sugars a little more, but decided against it in the long run.
Kentucky Coffee retails for around $19.99.