Simple Coffee Cocktails & Mocktails to Make at Home
Coffee does not have to be reserved for the morning.
Some of the best coffee drinks are the ones made slowly for an evening at home, served after dinner, or mixed when friends come over.
You do not need a complicated home bar or a long list of specialty ingredients either. A few familiar ingredients can turn espresso, cold brew, or freshly brewed coffee into something that feels completely different from your usual morning cup.
These three coffee drinks each have their own personality. The Espresso Martini is smooth and a little indulgent, Irish Coffee is warm and comforting, and the Coffee Negroni is bold, bitter, and made for someone who likes a more complex drink.
And if you are skipping the alcohol, each one can inspire a simple coffee mocktail too.
Espresso Martini
The Espresso Martini may look like a special-occasion drink, but it is surprisingly simple to make at home.
The key is starting with cooled espresso or cold brew and giving the drink a good shake. That shaking time helps chill the drink and creates the frothy top that makes an espresso martini feel a little more special.
What You’ll Need
1 oz coffee liqueur
1 oz vodka
1 oz cooled espresso or cold brew
Ice cubes
3 whole coffee beans, optional
How to Make It
Add the coffee liqueur, vodka, and cooled espresso or cold brew to a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
Shake well for about 20 seconds.
Fine strain into a martini or coupe glass.
Garnish with three whole coffee beans, or finish with a little chocolate shaving, cocoa powder, instant coffee, or cinnamon.
Easy Espresso Martini Variations
For a Mexican Espresso Martini, replace the vodka with tequila.
For a flavored Espresso Martini, add about ½ oz of your favorite coffee syrup. Pumpkin spice, chocolate, caramel, vanilla, and hazelnut are all easy ways to change the drink without changing the basic recipe.
This is also one of those recipes that can change with the seasons. Caramel or vanilla works anytime, while pumpkin spice makes an easy fall variation and chocolate feels right at home during the holidays.
Irish Coffee
Irish Coffee is simple, warm, and comforting.
It is a lovely drink to serve after dinner, during the colder months, or anytime you want something that falls somewhere between coffee and dessert.
The cream topping does not need to be complicated. It should be lightly whipped so it thickens but is still soft enough to pour.
What You’ll Need
1½ oz Irish whiskey
1 to 2 teaspoons brown sugar
6 oz freshly brewed hot coffee
Heavy cream
Freshly grated nutmeg or cocoa powder, optional
How to Make It
Warm the mug before making the drink.
Add the Irish whiskey, brown sugar, and freshly brewed coffee. Stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Pour cold heavy cream into a small bowl and whisk lightly until it begins to thicken but is still pourable.
Hold a spoon just above the coffee and gently pour the cream over the back of the spoon to create a soft layer on top.
Finish with a little freshly grated nutmeg or a dusting of cocoa powder.
Easy Irish Coffee Variations
Coffee syrups make it easy to change the flavor without complicating the recipe.
Try adding caramel, vanilla, hazelnut, maple, or chocolate syrup to taste.
If you are serving several people, putting a few syrup flavors beside the coffee makes it easy for everyone to choose their own.
Coffee Negroni
If the Espresso Martini is smooth and the Irish Coffee is comforting, the Coffee Negroni is the bold one of the group.
The coffee adds another layer to the bitter and citrus flavors of the drink. It is a good choice for someone who already enjoys stronger, more complex cocktails.
What You’ll Need
1 oz gin
1 oz Campari
1½ oz espresso or cold brew
1½ oz sweet vermouth
Ice cubes
1 strip of orange peel, for garnish
How to Make It
Fill a rocks glass with ice.
Pour in the gin, Campari, espresso or cold brew, and sweet vermouth.
Stir well to combine and chill the drink.
Finish with a strip of orange peel.
Make Them Without the Alcohol
A coffee mocktail does not have to be a perfect copy of the cocktail version to be good.
The goal is to keep some of the same qualities that made the original drink interesting—the coffee flavor, sweetness, bitterness, creaminess, or citrus—and build from there.
Espresso Martini Mocktail
Start with cooled espresso or cold brew and add vanilla syrup for sweetness.
An alcohol-free coffee spirit can add more depth, but you can also keep the drink very simple with coffee and flavored syrup.
Shake vigorously with plenty of ice before straining into your glass. The shaking is important because it chills the drink and helps create that signature frothy top.
Finish with coffee beans, cocoa powder, cinnamon, or chocolate shavings.
Irish Coffee Mocktail
Irish Coffee is one of the easiest drinks to adapt.
Combine hot coffee with brown sugar and a small splash of vanilla. Stir until the sugar dissolves.
Top with the same lightly whipped, pourable cream used for the cocktail version.
A little nutmeg or cocoa powder on top makes the drink feel finished without adding any complicated ingredients.
Coffee Negroni-Inspired Mocktail
For an alcohol-free drink inspired by the bitter coffee and citrus flavors of a Coffee Negroni, start with cold brew and add an alcohol-free bitter aperitif or alcohol-free bitters.
Add a little tonic water or orange-flavored sparkling water and serve over ice with a strip of orange peel.
Because alcohol-free bitter products vary in strength and flavor, start with a small amount and adjust the drink to taste.
Helpful Tools for Coffee Cocktails & Mocktails
This page may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, The Routine Revised earns from qualifying purchases.
You do not need a separate set of tools just for coffee drinks. A few versatile home bar basics can be used for cocktails, mocktails, coffee drinks, and everyday entertaining.
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If you already have most of the basics, I would not add more just for the sake of having a bigger bar setup. Start with the drinks you actually enjoy making and add the tools that make those drinks easier.
More Coffee & Drink Ideas
If you are building a simple coffee or drink station at home, you may also enjoy:
Popular Coffee Drinks Explained
Home Bar Accessories Worth Having
Simple Signature Cocktail & Mocktail Ideas for Gatherings
Frozen Margarita & Strawberry Daiquiri Recipes
Gigi Says
The best drinks are the ones you make the way you like them. Start with the basic recipe, then adjust the sweetness, coffee strength, or flavor until it tastes right to you.