It makes a nice after-dinner or late-evening drink. But what about the caffeine? When I used to drink a lot of coffee, the little bit of caffeine in a coffee liqueur didn't seem to be a big deal. But now that I've cut way back on regular coffee, I've noticed that drinking coffee liqueur late at night can affect my sleep.
So I decided to make my own version. I used decaffeinated coffee, and while I was at it, I went with one that had a little flavor - vanilla macadamia nut. I'm not a huge fan of flavored coffees in the morning, but for a liqueur, I though it might be nice.
And while I was at it, I used some rum along with the typical vodka that most recipes use. As soon as I mixed the coffee with the alcohol and it turned a dark brown, I knew I was on the right track.
After I made this, I looked at some of the other coffee liqueur recipes, and I see that my method is different from the rest. A lot of recipes use instant coffee, while others brew coffee and add it to the booze. I liked the flavor I got from this. It might have been wiser to melt the sugar into the water, and next time I might give that a try. But with enough shaking, it dissolved, so maybe that step isn't necessary, either. It's one less step.
As far as sweetness and strength, you can add more sugar or water, if you prefer. But since this is something you're not going to serve straight, you can certainly water it down when you serve it.
Coffee Liqueur
1 cup rum
2 cups vodka
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup water
Combine all the ingredients in a large jar. Seal and shake to combine. Each day for a week (or longer, if you aren't in a hurry) shake the jar.
After a week, strain through a fine sieve to remove the coffee grounds, then strain through a coffee filter to remove any additional sediment.
Transfer to a suitable container for storage.
