Of course, the combination of coffee and hard liquor is not a new thing. There are already countless ways of drinking coffee across the globe, and a caffeinated cocktail is no different - think Irish coffee fortified with whiskey, or Italy’s caffè corretto (a shot of espresso with a shot of liquor, usually grappa or sambuca). But it’s the Spanish version that made its way to the States via colonisation, and that establishments like Huber’s café have turned to for inspiration and immortalized. In most of Spain, where the drink most likely finds its origins, it’s called “carajillo” stemming from the Spanish word “coraje” meaning courage. In regions like Castellón it comes served in a sugar-rimmed glass that is first flambéed with lemon and coffee bean-infused brandy to caramelise the edges and give the final drink a warming, aromatic twist. This elaborate style is popular in fancier restaurants and cocktail bars. In other regions like Catalonia the preparation is simpler: coffee and brandy are mixed with sugar on the side for the drinker to add at his or her discretion. The drink is also popular in Latin and South America, made with brandy in Colombia, Licor 43 or mezcal in Mexico, and the more traditional rum in Cuba. There are as many Spanish coffee variations as there are coffee styles to indulge in, making it easy to personalise to your tastes.
The history
Portland’s oldest restaurant definitely popularised the coffee cocktail and made it an institution, but its origins are the product of a cross-Atlantic recipe movement. When Cuba was still a Spanish colony, army folklore says that Spanish troops brought their version of the carajillo to the battlefield, mixing coffee and rum for a boost of courage. Spanish invasions of the rest of Central and South America meant that the drink spread, finding it’s way to Mexico and all the way down the canal to Colombia. Huber’s Café records claim that the drink came to Portland in 1975 after then-owner Jim Louie took the recipe from the Fernwood Inn in Milwaukee, who in turn took it from a bar in Mexico. But it’s Huber’s Café that created the show. When you order a Spanish coffee at Huber’s today you’ll be met with a tableside fire spectacle of sorts involving swirling blue flames and a stellar mix of liquors, resulting in an incredibly flavourful and smooth drink peppered with nutmeg and with a story to boot.
The ingredients