Alexander Espresso
A Brandy Alexander with a shot of espresso shaken into it: creamy, chocolatey and cold, with a fine foam and a dusting of nutmeg. The coffee makes it less of a dessert and more of a drink.
At a glance
- Equal parts
- 1:1:1:1
- Active time
- 3 min
- Total time
- 4 min
- Makes
- 1 cocktail
- Serve
- Chilled, straight up
- Kit
- Shaker + espresso
Ingredients
Note: Freshly grated nutmeg is not optional. Ready-ground nutmeg has lost most of its aroma.
Method
-
Chill the glass
Put a coupe in the freezer for ten minutes.
-
Everything in the shaker
Fill the shaker with ice. Add the brandy, crème de cacao and cream, then pull the espresso and add it hot.
25 to 30 seconds -
Shake hard and strain
Shake hard for fifteen seconds. Double strain into the coupe.
Shake 15 seconds -
Nutmeg
Grate a little fresh nutmeg over the foam and serve.
Why this works
The Brandy Alexander is a sweet, creamy, chocolatey cocktail, and its weakness is that it can be cloying. Espresso fixes that. Its bitterness and acidity cut through the sugar in the crème de cacao and the fat of the cream, so the drink tastes balanced rather than like liquid dessert. Equal parts of all four is the simplest balance, and it works.
Adding the espresso hot to the shaker builds a foam, for the same reason an espresso martini foams. Hot espresso carries emulsified oils and gas, and shaking hard with ice firms them around trapped air. Cream adds its own fat and proteins to the foam, so the Alexander espresso's head is fine and silky. Double straining removes the ice shards that would break it.
Single cream rather than double keeps it drinkable. Double cream with that much sugar and spirit is very heavy, and it can turn grainy when shaken hard with acidic espresso.
Nutmeg is the classic Alexander garnish. Its aroma comes mostly from myristicin, sabinene and other volatile compounds that fade within weeks of grinding, so grate it fresh. The Alexander family of cocktails dates to the early twentieth century, starting with a gin version. Brandy took over by the mid-century and has stayed.
Variations
- Classic Brandy Alexander: no espresso, with 30 ml of each of the other three.
- With cold brew: 30 ml cold brew concentrate in place of the espresso. Less foam.
- With coffee liqueur: replace the crème de cacao with coffee liqueur for a double coffee drink.
- With rum: dark rum in place of brandy.
A full-strength cocktail. Not for drivers or anyone avoiding alcohol.
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Questions
What is an Alexander espresso?
A Brandy Alexander with espresso: brandy, crème de cacao, cream and a fresh shot of espresso shaken over ice and dusted with nutmeg.
Why add espresso to a Brandy Alexander?
Its bitterness balances the sweetness of the crème de cacao and the richness of the cream, and hot espresso helps build a fine foam.
Can I use double cream?
Single cream is better. Double cream makes it very heavy and can turn grainy when shaken with espresso.
Why fresh nutmeg?
Ready-ground nutmeg loses most of its aroma within weeks. Grated fresh, it gives a warm, sweet spice that finishes the drink.