Spirit: Revolution Spirits Cafecito

Distillery Locale: Austin

Price: $25/750 ml bottle

ABV: 20 percent

The Story: Revolution Spirits, a small craft distillery near Dripping Springs, launched in 2014 with its release of Austin Reserve Gin; it has since added more offerings, including a coffee liqueur. “There were others on the market but nothing we were in love with,” says distiller Brian Meola. They approached Mike McKim, of Austin’s Cuvée Coffee, because they were drawn to the brand’s nuanced small-lot coffees. After Meola discovered that “coffee with blueberry or pecan notes made our liqueur taste like them,” Revolution began experimenting and ultimately decided on Cuvée’s Mezzanotte (now called West Pole), a bold but not too strong Colombian blend with hints of molasses. The coffee is combined with a neutral corn spirit and sugar before being infused with Madagascar vanilla beans, resulting in a balanced but sweet tipple.

Parting Shot: Meola suggests enjoying the liqueur neat, with a bit of cream or milk, or paired with a brown spirit. It also works well in this recipe below.

Revolver (Jon Santer, 2004)

2 ounces bourbon
0.5 ounce Revolution Spirits Cafecito
2 dashes orange bitters
Orange peel for garnish

Combine all ingredients in mixing glass with ice and stir for 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled, coupe-style glass. Garnish with flamed orange peel.

This article originally appeared in the October 2019 issue of Texas Monthly with the headline “Boozy Beans.” Subscribe today.