CORDIAL RELATIONS Coffee and chocolate liqueurs make a tasty tandem By Nancy Ross Ryan

Photo by Laurie Proffitt

I have always considered it serendipity: Liqueurs come in two of my favorite flavors -- coffee and chocolate -- and they sit conveniently side by side on the wine and spirits merchants' shelves. (In America we also call them cordials, but if you're in London and you ask for a cordial you will get something altogether different. You will be served a refreshing, non-alcoholic fruit-based drink -- such as barley-lemon water -- probably the progenitor of today's soda pop.) Quite simply, liqueurs or cordials are flavored alcohol, often, but not always, sweetened with sugar. An alcohol base (brandy, whiskey, neutral-grain spirits, rum, eau de vie) is flavored with a wide variety of ingredients: barks, roots, spices, herbs, flowers, fruits, nuts, seeds and beans. And the beans I turn to, time after time, are coffee and cocoa beans in sweet and pourable profusion (see a list of favorites below). Most coffee and chocolate liqueurs range between a low of 14% to a high of 30% alcohol, and all are sweet. At their best they are the essence of coffee, coffee with cream, or white or dark chocolate. At their worst -- and that's why I have omitted some familiar liqueurs -- I find them overly sweet and harshly alcoholic. The adage "Don't judge a book by its cover," applies as well to liqueurs. Don't judge a liqueur by its bottle. Some very fancy schmancy bottles contain mediocre liqueurs. And some of the best come in plain brown bottles. All liqueurs probably began with Hippocrates in the fifth century B.C. This father of modern medicine infused alcohol with curative herbs and plants, and the resulting liqueur was described as "fit only for the strongest of men." (Frankly, some of the more medicinal 21st century liqueurs still fit that description.) The idea of liqueurs as medicine continued, and Christian monks began to experiment with flavored alcohol, coming up with their own formulas to cure everything from malaria to poor digestion. Two ancient formulas still sold today are Benedictine (originally made by French Benedictine monks to cure malaria) and Chartreuse (a digestif still made by the Carthusian Order of Christian monks in France). But who was that first man (or woman) -- their identity masked by time -- to conceive the celestial idea of infusing coffee and chocolate into alcohol? I certainly want to thank them, because both liqueurs are among the most delicious and versatile spirits on earth. You can drink them, cook with them, pour them straight from the bottle as dessert sauces, and use them to create a wide variety of drinks. Stumped for dessert? Unexpected company? Simply serve an ounce of coffee or chocolate liqueur or dribble the liqueur on ice cream. Some dynamite combos: Giovanni Buton Gran Caffee Espresso or Tia Maria Blue Mountain Coffee Liqueur on coffee ice cream; Tiramisu liqueur or Kamora French Vanilla Coffee Liqueur on vanilla ice cream; Vandermint Chocolate Liqueur on peppermint ice cream; Godiva Chocolate Liqueur on raspberry ice cream; Godet Belgian White Chocolate Liqueur on chocolate ice cream -- you get the idea. Cooking with coffee and chocolate liqueurs is best consigned to desserts because of the intensity of their flavors. (Salmon Kahlua? I don't think so.) Try adding a tablespoon of coffee or chocolate liqueur to your favorite chocolate cake, frosting or cookie recipe. Also you can lift the flavor bar in any prepared chocolate or vanilla dessert sauce by adding a tablespoon of coffee or dark chocolate liqueur to chocolate and caramel sauces and a tablespoon of white chocolate or cappuccino liqueur to vanilla sauces. Want a really quick sauce? Simply melt vanilla or chocolate ice cream and whisk in a spoon of white chocolate or coffee or chocolate liqueur. And when you're whipping sweetened heavy cream for topping desserts or coffee -- just one tablespoon of coffee, chocolate or white chocolate liqueur adds a new dimension. And speaking of new dimensions, consider after dinner -- coffee both flavored and topped with coffee or chocolate liqueur and liqueur-flavored whipped cream. And instead of fruit syrup, how about a shot of Kahlua in your next latte or a shot of Tiramisu liqueur in your cappuccino? The simplest and perhaps the best way to enjoy these truly scrumptious liqueurs is on their own, at room temperature, a one-ounce pour in a cordial glass, hopefully a glass with a little charm. On the other hand, there is a long, traditional repertoire of famous coffee and chocolate liqueur based cocktails. And if you're in the mood for something delicious and nostalgic, give these a swirl. Angel's Wing: Pour one ounce of any dark chocolate liqueur in a 2-ounce cordial glass. Very carefully spoon on one tablespoon of heavy cream, so it floats on top. Iced Coffee: Combine 6 ounces of strong, room temperature coffee with 1 teaspoon sugar. Stir to dissolve. Add 1 to 2 ounces of coffee or chocolate liqueur and pour into in a tall glass with ice cubes. Stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons of heavy cream (optional). Top with a scoop or two of coffee ice cream. Serve with a straw. Cocoa-Cola: Place ice in a tall glass. Add 1 to 1-1/2 ounces of chocolate liqueur of choice. Fill glass with cola. Cafe-Cola: As above, bust substitute coffee liqueur. Jalisco: In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, pour 1 ounce of tequila, 1 ounce of Kahlua or Tia Maria and 1 ounce of Godiva White Chocolate liqueur. With lid on shaker, shake to mix, then strain into a prechilled cocktail glass.

A Few of My Favorite Things Coffee Liqueurs      Carolans Irish coffee cream (Ireland)      Giovanni Buton Gran Caffe Espresso (Italy)      Godiva Cappuccino Liqueur (U.S.A.)      Kahlua Royale Cream Liqueur (Holland)      Kahlua Licor de Cafe (Mexico)      Kaldi 100% Columbian Coffee Liqueur (Columbia)      Kamora Coffee Liqueur (Mexico)      Kamora French Vanilla Coffee Liqueur (Mexico)      Kamora Hazelnut Coffee Liqueur (Mexico)      Patron XO Cafe Coffee Liqueur with Tequila (Mexico)      Tia Maria Blue Mountain Coffee Liqueur (Jamaica)      Tiramisu (Italy) Dark Chocolate Liqueurs      Creme de Cacao      Giovanni Buton Cream Cacao (Italy)      Godiva Chocolate Liqueur (U.S.A.)      Vandermint Chocolate Liqueur (Holland) White Chocolate Liqueurs      Godet Belgian White Chocolate Liqueur (Belgium)