Georgia runs on coffee about as hard as it runs on sweet tea, so it was only a matter of time before the espresso martini planted a permanent flag on menus from Buckhead to Savannah. Late summer dinner parties, football tailgates that start a little too early, weddings that go a little too late. The espresso martini has become the drink people order twice. Two coffee liqueurs are leading that charge in a big way right now, and they could not be more different in personality: Mr Black, the Australian cold brew that bartenders swear by, and Evil Bean, the new Nevada-made liqueur already stacking up gold medals. We carry both, and honestly, picking a favorite is like picking a favorite Georgia peach variety. You don't have to, and you shouldn't.
Why coffee liqueur is having a moment
The espresso martini isn't new (it dates back to a London bar in the 1980s), but it's never been bigger than it is right now, and coffee liqueur is the ingredient doing the heavy lifting. Both of the brands below lean into that trend from opposite ends of the world, and both were built with one job in mind: make the best glass of coffee and vodka you've ever had.
Mr Black Cold Brew Coffee Liqueur
Mr Black comes out of Australia, where the brand set out to make a coffee liqueur strong enough to hold its own in a cocktail instead of disappearing under sugar. It's built from 100% Arabica beans sourced from Colombia's Popayán reserve and Ethiopia's Guji region, cold brewed to pull out depth without bitterness, then fortified with vodka. At 25% ABV, it drinks less like a dessert liqueur and more like a spirit that happens to taste like your favorite roast.
Tasting notes
Nose: dark chocolate and orange marmalade
Palate: dried fig, roasted espresso, a light bitterness that keeps things from tipping sweet
Finish: smooth, lingering, coffee-forward
Best enjoyed: neat over one big cube by the fire, or shaken into the cocktail it was built for.
Mr Black Espresso Martini
- 30 ml Mr Black Coffee Liqueur
- 30 ml vodka
- 30 ml fresh espresso or cold brew concentrate
- 15 ml simple syrup
- 3 coffee beans, to garnish
Add everything but the garnish to a shaker with ice and shake hard — you want a proper workout here, since the froth on top comes from the shake, not the coffee. Double-strain into a chilled coupe and finish with three coffee beans for the traditional nod to health, wealth, and happiness.
Evil Bean Cold Brew Coffee Liqueur
Evil Bean is the newer name on the shelf, but it didn't take long to get noticed. It picked up Best in Show at the 2025 Tag Global Spirit Awards along with double gold and gold medals from the San Francisco and New York World Spirits Competitions. It's made in Minden, Nevada, where Master Distiller Joe O'Sullivan and Master Roaster Christian Waskiewicz paired an estate-distilled spirit with high-altitude roasted coffee beans grown and roasted within a couple of miles of the distillery. The result is a liqueur built for a little mischief, and it comes in at 25% ABV (50 proof).
Tasting notes
Nose: roasted coffee bean with cocoa and a hint of vanilla
Palate: dark chocolate, cherry cordial, and caramel sweetness
Finish: velvety, with a clean espresso bitterness that lingers
Best enjoyed: as the star of its own espresso martini, aptly nicknamed the Evil Tini.
The Evil Tini
- 30 ml Evil Bean Cold Brew Coffee Liqueur
- 45 ml vodka
- 30 ml fresh espresso or cold brew concentrate
- 7.5 ml simple syrup
- 3 coffee beans, to garnish
Combine everything in an ice-filled shaker, shake vigorously, and double-strain into a coupe glass. Evil Bean's tasting notes lean toward cherry and caramel rather than fig and marmalade, so this version comes out a touch richer and sweeter than the Mr Black build. It’s worth trying side by side to see which one wins your table.
Pairing it with Georgia
Both of these liqueurs were made for a cocktail, but they hold their own next to dessert too, and that's where the state's pecan crop comes in handy. Georgia grows more pecans than anywhere else in the country, and a slice of pecan pie next to either coffee liqueur is about as easy a pairing as exists — the toasted, caramelized pecans echo the roasted notes in the glass, whether you're pouring Mr Black's fig-and-chocolate profile or Evil Bean's cherry-and-caramel one. If you're hosting anything this fall, from a Georgia football watch party to a backyard dinner, a pitcher of one of these martinis next to a pecan pie will do more work than you'd expect.
Try them both
Mr Black and Evil Bean are both available through Georgia Crown, so check your local retailer for both bottles. Whichever one lands in your glass first, the coffee cocktail moment isn't slowing down anytime soon — and now you've got two very good reasons to keep shaking.
