Getting Tipsy on Coffee?! Adding Alcohol to Coffee, Every Sip Makes Young People's Souls Tremble!

"Wine with coffee, I only want one cup"

As a classic song released in the 1970s, not only is Teresa Teng's voice exceptionally intoxicating, but the combination of wine + coffee in the song has also become a pursuit of stimulation for the younger generation today.

In their pursuit of neural stimulation and physiological excitement, people have gone to great lengths. Alcohol can relax people, while caffeine can energize them. Even as early as the 1940s, bars began to popularize the addition of spirits and hot coffee to burnt sugar cubes, finally topped with a layer of cream, creating the world-renowned Irish Coffee.

However, with this combination, the coffee's flavor is often overshadowed by the strong taste of spirits. This led bartenders to start using espresso paired with vodka and liqueur to create the Espresso Martini. The espresso extends its complex flavors throughout the entire mouth, while the intensity of vodka and the sweetness of liqueur "intertwine" with each other, bringing an endless aftertaste to the palate.

Later on, coffee and alcohol were no longer sought just for their medicinal effects, nor were they exclusive to bars. The combination of both also ushered the coffee industry into a new era. Originally belonging only to morning and evening beverages, they have undergone different changes under the "adjustment" of baristas!

The Art of Coffee and Alcohol Pairing

Like specialty coffee, alcoholic coffee aims to add complexity and rich sensory experiences to coffee without depriving it of its main character. However, unlike adding fruit juice to coffee, adding alcohol is much more complex. The flavors of specialty coffee are already delicate and subtle, while the taste of alcohol is often more intense than the coffee itself. Therefore, the proportion of base alcohol in alcoholic coffee is usually not excessive.

Coffee and alcohol share a common characteristic: their main flavors cannot be separated from acidity, sweetness, and bitterness. Each ingredient's flavor manifests at different stages, which is why there are three different flavor stages: front, middle, and back.

- 2020 Peru Creative Coffee Champion making alcoholic coffee

To combine both effectively requires letting the front, middle, and back stages each perform their duties. Not only should the unique characteristics of both be expressed in stages, but the combined flavors created during these stages should also serve as transitions, allowing the entire beverage to present richer layers and flavors.

World Barista Champion Wu Zelin stated that to allow coffee to express its unique flavors even after adding alcohol, one might need to intentionally over-extract or under-extract the coffee.

Because the taste of alcohol is definitely more prominent than coffee, when making alcoholic coffee, it's necessary to intentionally enhance the acidity/intensity of the coffee, then pair it with suitable spirits and other ingredients to achieve a balance of sweet, sour, and bitter. Unlike regular brewed coffee or cocktails, neither coffee nor alcohol is the sole protagonist—they are just ingredients.

The Rising Trend of "Tipsy" Culture

Compared to regular specialty coffee and cocktails, alcoholic coffee presents an advanced level of difficulty. To make a good cup of alcoholic coffee, one needs to taste and confirm the flavors of each ingredient, then apply comprehensive professional knowledge to make reasonable combinations. During creation, one must adhere to the core flavor profile, and finally inspect each finished product through aroma, taste, and aftertaste.

Today, compared to non-alcoholic fruit specialty coffees and high-alcohol cocktails, in an era where the younger generation seeks the joy of being tipsy, alcoholic coffee—hovering between drunkenness and sobriety—has gradually become a signature item in cafés.

Tipsiness is a state between sobriety and drunkenness. Compared to being completely drunk, this state doesn't leave too much burden after sobering up. On the contrary, the pleasant mood after being tipsy can help people better start a new day.

More and more people are pursuing "tipsiness" for several reasons: one is seeking a way to relax; another is weakening one's ability to restrain emotions, allowing oneself to be more authentic; and under the mild influence of alcohol, anxiety can be relieved while inspiring more ideas to help accomplish tasks. Therefore, not just at night, more and more consumers are beginning to seek tipsiness during the day.

I wonder if everyone remembers the recent trend of "convenience store cocktails." To reduce alcohol concentration while retaining its effects and improving palatability, many people would buy a small bottle of alcohol from convenience stores and then drink it with milk coffee/milk tea.

Recently, the beverage development department at Luckin Coffee understood this trend well. With the arrival of Qixi Festival (Chinese Valentine's Day), they launched a strawberry latte with Baileys, combining the younger generation's love for fruit coffee and tipsiness into one.

Alcoholic beverages provide coffee shops with a ceremonial consumption experience. Through the concept of tipsiness, they can increase consumer acceptance of both coffee and alcohol. Today, consumers have more pursuits for beverage innovation and seeking stimulation, and the combination of coffee + alcohol will form a new trend.

Important Reminders

However! While pursuit is one thing, tipsy products do contain alcohol, so be sure to drink in moderation according to your own condition! Also:

"Do not drink and drive" & "Minors are prohibited from drinking alcohol"

Image source: Internet

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