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This summer’s big drink: The Espresso Tonic

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This summer’s biggest drink is set to be a cold, caffeinated, carbonated concoction that’s the perfect refresher for warm lazy days spent out in the sunshine. It’s a quintessentially historic drink that has its roots in New York and has recently been championed by baristas on the global stage.

Ladies and gentlemen let us (re)introduce you to the espresso tonic.

The Espresso Tonic

Founded in 1895, the Manhattan Special beverage company has been serving up drinks to the New York public for 120 years. Their signature tipple was the Espresso Coffee Soda, a “thick and fizzy, jet-black blend of espresso and selzer topped off with a bracing wallop of pure cane sugar [that] muscles its way around the mouth, making itself at home, before bounding down the throat like a big, goofy kid going to play in the basement.”

This “hand grenade” of a drink was first created by Michael Garavuso, who worked on the idea of creating a popular alternative to the espresso that could be enjoyed in the summer. The rest, they say, is history.

Recently, popular baristas competing in national and international championships have championed this old fashioned summer staple and unsurprisingly its status has spiked after being featuring prominently in some trend-setting coffee shops. The drink has become a popular choice on America’s West Coast and in metropolitan Sweden alike and Stumptown, a prominent member of America’s third-wave movement, is championing the espresso soda.

Steven Latham of New York’s Box Kite is a fan, telling Eater that their version is becoming increasingly popular now that winter is firmly in the rearview mirror. “People are loving it,” he says, adding that they’re never going to take it off their menu.

Tips for a good espresso tonic

Whether you want to create a straight forward plain and simple espresso tonic, or experiment a little and serve up a cold brew-espresso-tonic hybrid, here are some simple tips to set you on your way.

Have a profile in mind

Do you want to go for a slightly refreshingly bitter drink or one that’s slightly sweet and floral? Just like coffee, there’s a wide range of tonics out there so work out what you type of drink you want to offer.

Choose good coffee

This part should go without saying! Many of the coffee shops that already feature this product heavily opt for delicate single-origin espressos of a floral or fruity nature. For a more orthodox offering, we’d recommended trialling our Colombian La Esperanza, though if you fancy playing around a little then dive in with our dark-stone flavoured Rwandan Nkora.

But for a friendly ‘everyday’ profile, you can’t beat the tempting notes of our best-selling and award-winning blend, Super Crema.

Choose your tonic wisely

Take some time to shop around as there are plenty of choices when it comes to tonic waters. Perhaps a standard, branded option will be the perfect tonic (pun intended), or perhaps it’ll be a sweeter, flavoured or infused variety that will complement the notes of your single-origin espressos. Take your time here and don’t rush towards the first tonic you see!

As with everything, there’ll be a little bit of trial and error before you come across the perfect concoction!

Recipe

  • One espresso
  • Tonic water
  • Ice
  1. Put a couple of ice cubes into a glass
  2. Pour in tonic until the glass is about 3/4 full.
  3. Brew the espresso directly into the glass

Photo: AlastairG Creative Commons