The inspiration for this drink came from this amazing but unusual bag of coffee. I’m very into high-quality, usually single-origin coffee, almost always with no additives. However, I’m noticing a recent trend of flavored coffees that are done with such care and intention that they bust through the “no flavorings” wall I built in my mind. The coffee comes from farmer Rodrigo Sanchez Valencia of the Finca Monteblanco farm in Huila, Colombia. In a highly experimental process, Rodrigo co-ferments the coffee fruits with fresh passionfruit, imbuing them with huge amounts of tropical flavor. I thought this was a prime candidate to use in a cocktail as a syrup and thought it was a great opportunity to go to the unexpected but always delicious combination of coffee and pineapple. Add some fresh citrus, falernum, Curaçao, and, of course, rum, and you end up with something that reads like a coffee-infused riff on a Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai. It’s unabashedly delicious. You might be wondering, why vanilla extract? Because it’s delicious; don’t overthink it! I wanted this drink to reflect the serious quality but also the playful creativity of the coffee that inspired it. Combine that with the kitsch glassware and the intentionally goofy name (a not-so-subtle reference to the Surfer on Acid), and you end up with a playful drink that’s not ashamed of what it is. At the same time, it should still satisfy the standards of some of the most discerning tiki enthusiasts. Cheers!
Caffeinated Surfer
Ingredients
- 2 oz Denizen Merchant's Reserve
- ½ oz Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao
- 1 oz pineapple juice
- ¾ oz coffee syrup 1:1 brewed coffee* and sugar
- ½ oz lime juice
- ½ oz lemon juice
- 1 tsp falernum
- 1⁄4 tsp vanilla extract
Garnishes:
- Pineapple wedge and grated coffee* bean
- The drink was specifically designed to use Methodical's passionfruit-washed Colombia Monteblanco coffee.
Instructions
- Whip shake ingredients with pebble/crushed ice.
- Dump into hurricane glass.
- Fill with pebble/crushed ice.
Garnish
- Grated coffee bean and pineapple wedge.
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