The English Spirit Distillery has created a premium coffee liqueur, to cater for the growing interest in Espresso Martinis.
In response to the rise in popularity of both high quality coffee and spirits, Master Distiller Dr John Walters has created an artisan coffee liqueur made with small batch, scratch distilled vodka. The product is one of the rare coffee spirits to be made with the distillery’s own bespoke alcohol and unique production method.
The market for coffee spirits has burgeoned in recent times, with Espresso Martinis recently being named as the UK’s most popular cocktail, searched over 90,000 times per month. And with consumers becoming more aware of their coffee than ever before, there is a growing demand for expressions of high quality coffee products. English Spirit’s Coffee Liqueur follows the release of Caramel Rum Liqueur in June, and Seax Vodka in March. The new addition increases the distillery’s core portfolio to 17 products, with 9 spirits and 8 liqueurs: all distilled from scratch, in house.
Despite market disruption from the coronavirus, English Spirit has seen encouraging success via their established online shop, which has seen sales increase by nearly 400% – providing a solid route to market for new products, direct to customers.
The product, designed in house, is distinguished from other commercial coffee spirits in two principal ways. The first is that the vodka base is distilled from scratch, in house, from East Anglian sugar beet. Single distilled in 200 litre batches and unfiltered, this is a truly artisan process that gives control over the high quality spirit. The second is the method used to combine the vodka with the coffee. Starting with a balanced blend of five arabica beans hand selected by the master distiller for their flavours, the process goes beyond cold brewing or infusion. Part of the coffee is distilled with the vodka, and another part is sous vide (slow cooked at a low temperature) before combining the two, and bottling as a liqueur at 25% ABV. This unique process grabs an enormous but precise array of coffee flavours, which ultimately means a greater load of rich but delicate coffee flavour notes.
Just as with coffee, the beverage can be appreciated in a number of ways. The flavour profile changes when drunk neat, with a small amount of liquid to dilute, or whether mixed with another beverage for extra flavour. The distillery’s perfect serve is an English Spirit Espresso Martini which is equal parts Coffee Liqueur, Seax Vodka and good quality coffee. Seax Vodka is also distilled by English Spirit, which means that both the vodka and coffee liqueur element come from the same distillery, which provides a superb flavour balance and rich drinking experience.
Master Distiller Dr John Walters says: “The attention to detail behind good distilling is not dissimilar to making good coffee: there are so many elements that can be tweaked to perfection in both. I’m a bit of a geek about both coffee and spirits, so making this liqueur was a real joy – a gorgeous way of expressing coffee flavours like never before.”
General Manager James Lawrence says: “Our ethos is taking the best ingredients and using the best alcohol to portray flavours in the best way we possibly can – and so coffee was a natural choice for us. If you want a really great Espresso Martini then you need a great coffee spirit; and look no further than our perfectly engineered liqueur.”
English Spirit Coffee Liqueur is bottled at 25% ABV, and is available in 50cl and 5cl pack sizes. The 50cl bottles are available to buy online now via the English Spirit website, at £22 each.
For more information about English Spirit, visit www.englishspirit.uk
