Coffee, Cocktails, Community

On November 15th 2016 Steadfast Coffee hosted the CommonWealth Coffee Cocktail Competition (the best of both worlds, eh?) presented by Nashville Coffee Collective and The United States Bartenders' Guild. Nashville seems to be a place where both well curated coffee and hand crafted cocktails seem to reign, so what's better to celebrate the two than a coffee cocktail? Certainly with sponsors like Matchless Coffee Soda, Steadfast Coffee, Revelator Coffee Company, Cups, Cocktail Kingdom, Jack Rudy Cocktail Co., Moxie, Baratza, AeroPress and of course us at Edible Nashville, the event was one of a kind. Also, unique is Nashville's warm and collegial coffee community, coming together regularly for throwdowns, cuppings, and tastings. 

With the garage doors thrown open to the spacious patio on a warm November night, Steadfast Coffee was the perfect venue for the lively event. It was standing room only to watch the teams go to work. 

The drink that won? The Bitter End, a combinatoin of espresso, gin, rose and tonic, with a wisp of grapefruit to finish. Created by Barista Robbie Melton and Bartender Adam Milikin of Steadfast Coffee. This drink is not only a crowd pleaser but one that entices all your senses. The Bitter End is refreshing and light while giving you complex and unique flavors. Congrats to Steadfast Coffee's great team! 

Second place winners, Evan Holder of Barista Parlor and Andrew Hannigan of Rolf & Daughters wanted to create a drink that expounded upon 2 major themes in the classic drink The Manhattan-- those being familiarity and popularity. The correlation between these two themes is what makes the Night Spirit so unique. Familiarity in the sense that this drink is enhanced by the interplay of its noticeable and complimentary flavors. We believe that popularity in a drink is that which can be easily identified. Such is the case between the two major ingredients of this drink: coffee and rum. "Right before the cocktail is served, the over proof rum rinse is lit, igniting a blue spirit-like flame. The flame burns idle momentarily, melting the chocolate coated blueberry garnish, releasing a pleasant fragrance into the mouth of the glass before its squelched by the rest of the stirred cocktail."

The Bitter End

1st place winner. Barista: Robbie Melton and Bartender: Adam Milikin of Steadfast Coffee

1 double shot of espresso

25ml Junipero Gin

15ml Pampolmouss Rose

15ml Jack Rudy Tonic

Grapefruit oil and peel

Stir all ingredients with ice. Serve up. Express grapefruit oil on drink and garnish with grapefruit peel

The Night Spirit

2nd place winner. Barista: Evan Holder of Barista Parlor and Bartender: Andrew Hannigan of Rolf & Daughters

In a mixing glass combine:

In a mixing glass combine:

1.5 oz Stolen Smoked Rum 

.75 oz Cold Brew Barista Parlor "El Cascabel" coffee

.5 oz Aloroso Aurora

.25 oz Carpano Antica 

.25 oz turbinado lemon oleo saccharum

2 dashes Angostura Bitters 

Add ice and stir 

Rinse a Nick and Nora glass with Stolen Overproof Jamaican Rum

Pour drink into glass and garnish with Blueberry skewer 

Garnish:

Blueberries soaked in Angostura, Antica and Oloroso.

Skewer blueberries and roll in grated Dandelion Chocolate "70% San Juan Estate, Trinidad"

THE BAD SAINT

3^rd Place Winner: Barista: Julia Jackson of Barista Parlor and Bartender: Mitchell of Urban Cowboy Public House 

Star Anise Rinse

1.25oz Pierre Ferrand Ambre Cognac

.75oz Pepper Bacon Fat Wash Cold Brew

1tsp Mexican Cola Reduction

3 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

1 dashes Bitter Truth Celery Bitters

Swath lemon express

Fennel frond and star anise garnish

St. George Absinthe spritz

1. Add 1 1/2oz melted bacon fat and ½ tbsp ground pepper to 25oz cold brew at room temperature. Refrigerate overnight; the fat will solidify and can easily be skimmed off. Strain the remainder through a moistened coffee filter. Refrigerate.

Reduce 3 12oz bottles of Mexican Cola to 6oz by simmering on medium heat. Allow to cool and refrigerate.

Soak 3 star anise pods in 12oz boiling water. Remove from boil and allow to steep overnight in refrigerator. Strain out pods and refrigerate.Drink Steps: Add a dash of star anise to rocks glass. Swirl and empty.

In a separate glass, add cognac, cold brew, Cola reduction, and bitters. Fill with ice and stir to chill. Strain into first glass.

Express lemon swath over the top of the drink and garnish with fennel frond and star anise pod.

Spritz with absinthe and enjoy!