JQ the speciality coffee cocktail guru

Life is full of small pleasures, that when combined, they just can’t be beaten. Like burgers and fries, pizza and beer, or meat and red wine, these combinations are meant for each other. In the last 5 years, a new combination has been captivating minds and tastes buds. A combination that brings together the energy of our mornings, coffee, and the fun of our nights, alcohol. Coffee Mixology is the new chic trend in the world of taste and who better than Jacqueline Ramos (JQ) to prove it!

JQ is a Filipino-American coffee expert who has done a marvelous career in the coffee industry. Starting as a barista at Starbucks near San Francisco, climbing her way up becoming the store supervisor, coffee master, and then moved to NYC to help open the bars at the Starbucks reserve roastery. New York gave her the chance to fall in love and fully immerse herself in the fascinating coffee mixology world. She worked at cafés/bar hybrids like Kobrick Coffee Co. & Felix Roasting Co. and finally moved to Nashville to establish her new brand: The Coffee Effect. 

JQ with her expertise brings together all the best of the Specialty Coffee Industry and the Mixology world to create the most delightful coffee cocktails that any coffee purist could ask. 

Jacqueline’s secret weapons are the amazing coffee blends brewed with third-wave equipment that exalt the best attributes of the beans. 

JQ brings to us the 5 most thirst-quenching Specialty Coffee cocktails you could ever ask, one for each of out coffee #Characters. 

We know you are craving to make one for your own #Character. So here we have these unique coffee recipes: 

Mezcal Mocha

Character: #Vigorous

Cocktail Profile: Dark roast, with bold flavors of coffee, dark chocolate, cinnamon, and sweet mezcal. 

Brewing Method: Ibrik/Cezve or French Press

Coffee Blend: Dark Roast “Cafe Cubano” 

Alcohol: Mezcal – Del Maguey Crema de Mezcal

Wake up with bold and spiced flavors of a dark roast coffee with chocolate. and cinnamon hints paired with a marvelous mezcal. 

Ingredients: 

• 6g dark roast or 100% robusta/liberica coffee or any coffee with roasted and dark chocolate notes
• 60 mL of water
• ¼ tsp of cinnamon.
• 1 oz mezcal.
• 4-6 drops of chocolate bitters.
• Dark chocolate syrup.
• 0.5 oz of vanilla (cinnamon) syrup.
• (op) 1 drop of cayenne extract.

Steps: 

1. Preparation: 
   1. Brewing the coffee on an ibrik: 
      1. Grind coffee extra fine and heat water to 80 C (176 F).
      2. Heat up ibrik with hot water, then pour coffee grounds and cinnamon in.
      3. Pour hot water, then place on a heat source 
      4. Heat for 2 minutes (until it foams).
      5. Let grounds settle for a few seconds, then pour and strain into a carafe.
   2. Pour mezcal, dark mocha syrup, vanilla syrup, chocolate bitters, and cayenne extract (if desired) into shaking tin: 
      1. If the chocolate syrup is thick, stir gently until melted. 
      2. Shake just a few times to incorporate other ingredients and to texturize slightly. Because the drink is hot, too much pressure may build up if the drink is shaken too much. 

2. Build:

1. Pour mixed drink into a coupe.
2. Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. If you didn’t previously add cayenne and want to add a little spice, add one drop to the top. 

(C)Old (Brew) Fashioned

Character: #Fascinating

Cocktail Profile: Medium roasted beans with a strong spirit create a coffee forward drink with sweet and citrus-like undertones

Brewing Method: Cold Brew

Coffee Blend: Medium Roast Kenya coffee – citrus and berry notes

Alcohol: Bourbon: Woodford Reserve

A play on the Old Fashioned with a perfect balance of bourbon, coffee, and subtle sweet-citrus flavors

Ingredients: 

• 12g medium roast coffee with subtle citrus flavors.
• 2.5 oz bourbon.
• 1-2 barspoon(s) of orange cardamom syrup.
• 2-3 drops of aromatic bitters
• 4-6 drops of chocolate bitters.
• Ice: cubes and 1 large sphere.
• Orange peel.

Home Bar Friendly Ingredient Quick Substitutes:

• Orange Cardamom Syrup → Store-bought orange syrup or 1 barspoon of simple syrup + ½ – 1 barspoon of orange juice.

Steps: 

1. Preparation: 
   1. Make orange cardamom syrup: 
      1. Peel, juice, and fine strain 2 oranges.
      2. Heat ½ cup water to a soft boil. Pour 1 cup sugar and mix. 
      3. Once dissolved, add orange peels, juice, and 3 – 5 cardamom pods. 
      4. Heat it for 15 – 20 minutes.
      5. Fine strain into a bottle and let cool. Add orange peels to syrup if desired. The syrup is good for 2 weeks – 1 month. 

1. Brew coffee cold brew with bourbon 

1. Grind coffee coarse.
2. Pour bourbon over grounds (0.5 oz will be absorbed by coffee grounds).
3. Steep for 15 – 17 hours at room temperature. 
4. If needed, fine strain into new carafe after steeping.

2. Mix:

1. Pour coffee-infused bourbon, chocolate bitters, aromatic bitters, orange syrup, and ice. Then stir.

3.Build:

1. Drop large ice into rocks glass.
2. Pour mixed drink into the glass.
3. Garnish with orange peel twist.

Ramos Coffee Fizz

Character: #Cheerful

Cocktail Profile: Light roast floral Guatemala Geisha and bright sweet and citrus flavors

Brewing Method: Espresso

Coffee Blend: Guatemala Geisha – coffee blossom, peach

Alcohol: Gin -Suntory Roku 

Less like drinking the cocktail version of a milkshake and more like drinking a gentle sunbeam of citrus and fragrant flowers with single-origin floral espresso and light Asian citrus flavors of yuzu and calamansi.

Ingredients: 

• 7 g coffee with floral and subtle fruit notes. 
• 30 mL of water.,
• 1.5 oz gin.
• 0.5 oz “heavy cream” substitute of frothed 1.5:1 of almond milk + chilled coconut cream.
• 0.75 oz yuzu juice.
• 0.75 oz calamansi syrup.
• 1 fresh egg white.
• Ice.
• Club soda.

Home Bar Friendly Ingredient Quick Substitutes: 

• Yuzu juice → lemon juice.
• Calamansi syrup → 0.5 oz lime juice + 0.75 simple syrup.
• Dairy-Free “Heavy Cream” → 0.5 oz heavy cream.

Steps:

1. Preparation:

1. Pull espresso shot and chill with 1 ice cube

2. Mix:

1. Pour all ingredients except for ice and club soda into shaking tin. Shake for 2 minutes. 
2. Add ice, then shake for another 30 seconds.

3. Build:

1. Strain into chilled Collins glass. Let sit for a little bit as it settles. If able, place glass in the fridge/freezer as it settles for a minute.
2. Pour club soda until the head pops up above the glass.

Cafe Mimosa 

Character: #Adventurous

Cocktail Profile: A single-origin Colombian light roast microlot coffee, bright citrus flavors, and juicy acidity

Brewing Method: Pourover, V60 

Coffee Blend: Colombia Dario Flores Microlot – hibiscus, papaya, passionfruit 

Alcohol: Prosecco- Ruffino D.O.C. Sparkling Wine 

The perfect brunch drink – looks like iced coffee, goes down like a mimosa

Ingredients: 

• 12g single-origin coffee with bright acidity and citrus or other fruity flavor notes (ie natural Colombian, washed Ethiopia Yirgacheffe, or Kenya Nyeri). 
• 150 ml Brut prosecco.
• 90 mL of water.
• 1 tsp hibiscus tea.
• ½ oz yuzu hibiscus syrup.
• 1 orange.

Home Bar Friendly Ingredient Quick Substitutes: 

• Hibiscus tea → bar spoon of lemon juice.
• Yuzu hibiscus syrup → lemon syrup.
• Fresh orange juice → store-bought orange juice.

Steps: 

1. Preparation: 
   1. Make yuzu hibiscus syrup 
      1. Brew 1 cup of hibiscus tea with 1 tbsp loose flowers.
      2. Heat up water to a rolling boil, then pour in 1 cup sugar. Lower to simmer and mix.
      3. Once dissolved, add ½ tsp yuzu juice and mix.
   2. Juice 1 orange and finely strain into a carafe.
   3. Brew 30 mL (1 oz) of hibiscus tea for 4 minutes, then chill with an ice cube.
   4. Brew coffee on a pourover (V60), then pour the syrup and mix. Chill coffee with ice cubes. 
      1. Heat water to 94 C (201 F) and grind coffee medium fine.
      2. Fold paper filter, then wet filter and coffee carafe with the hot water.
      3. Pour coffee grounds into pourover and make a small divot in the middle of the coffee bed.
      4. Pour water until all coffee grounds are saturated. Let “bloom” for at least 30 seconds. 
      5. Pour until 60 mL water and wait until the coffee has finished dripping.

2. Build:

1. Pour orange juice into a champagne flute or stemless wine glass.
2. Pour iced hibiscus tea.
3. Pour iced yuzu hibiscus coffee.
4. Garnish with an orange twist.

Blackberry Coffee Sangria

Character: #Chill

Cocktail Profile: Gently sweet with subtle berry flavors 

Brewing Method: Pourover

Coffee Blend: Ethiopia Guji – medium-light roast with berry flavors

Alcohol: Semi-sweet, semi-sparkling red wine – Stella Rosa Black Il Conte

A calming, fruity drink for the afternoon 

Ingredients: 

• 12 g coffee.
• 150 ml of water.
• Blackberry Rosemary syrup.
• Semi-sweet, semi-sparkling red wine.
• Fruit – blackberries, small apple slices, orange medallion slice.

Home Bar Friendly Ingredient Quick Substitutes: 

• Blackberry Rosemary syrup → Blueberry syrup, Strawberry syrup.

Steps: 

1. Preparation: 
   1. Make blackberry rosemary syrup. 
      1. Heat 1 cup water to a soft boil, then pour ¾ cup of sugar. Then mix.
      2. Once dissolved, pour 2 cups of blackberries and add 1 rosemary sprig.
      3. Cook for 15-20 minutes.
      4. Strain into a bottle, and let cool. The syrup is good from 2 weeks – 1 month. 
   2. Brew coffee on pourover 
      1. Heat water to 94 C (201 F) and grind coffee medium fine.
      2. Fold paper filter, then wet filter and coffee carafe with the hot water. 
      3. Pour coffee grounds into pourover and make a small divot in the middle of the coffee bed. 
      4. Pour water until all coffee grounds are saturated. Let “bloom” for at least 30 seconds. 
      5. Pour as necessary until 180 mL water and wait until the coffee has finished dripping.
   3. Add blackberry syrup to coffee and mix. Then add ice cubes to chill. 
2. Build: 
   1. Add fruit into a stemless wine glass.
   2. Pour about 4 oz of red wine.
   3. Pour iced blackberry coffee into the carafe.

What are you waiting for to try the recipe of your #Character? Why not even trying them all?

In case you don’t know yours, take our test to discover it!