The espresso martini has long been considered an after-dinner sipper, but it’s also part dessert and part energy drink – a beverage to sweeten you up, wake you up and mess you up, in short order.
Blue Stave – a new Uptown cocktail lounge, adjacent to sister restaurant Copper & Sage – turns out an elegant, dangerously quaffable riff on this caffeine-fueled concoction. Served in a coupe with three de rigueur espresso beans for garnish (said to represent health, wealth and happiness), this version exchanges the typical vodka-Kahlúa-espresso ingredient list for Skyy espresso vodka (capturing the essence of roasted coffee), Malibu coconut rum (for hints of vanilla and coconut) and crème de cacao white for a light, chocolatey finish. It’s sparkling clear and icy cold, perfect for invoking winter and enduring summer.
This one is almost as easy to make as it is to drink. Begin by chilling a coupe or martini glass. Put ice cubes in a mixing glass, then add 2 oz. Skyy espresso vodka, ½ oz. Malibu coconut rum and ½ oz. crème de cacao white. Stir 15-20 times, then strain into a chilled glass and garnish with three espresso beans. One sip of this ultra-smooth holy water and you’ll proclaim, “Bless me! That’s good!”
