The Banana-Espresso Flip is a rich dark rum cocktail flavored with espresso and fruity banana liqueur. The drink is made with an egg white to yield a frothy, creamy textured drink and is served in a coupe glass.
This cocktail tastes like a mash-up between an espresso martini and a toasted piece of banana bread. Earthy, bitter espresso blends seamlessly with the caramel notes in dark rum and sweet, fruity banana liqueur. For best results, ensure the espresso is chilled or at least cooled after brewing before adding it to the cocktail — since the drink includes an egg white, chilling the espresso will ensure the egg white won’t cook or curdle while shaking.
A flip is a category of cocktails with a long history dating back to the 1600s. Originally, a flip cocktail was made with a whole egg, rum, molasses, and some sort of alcoholic beverage (first beer, then distilled spirits or fortified wines). Later, molasses was swapped for a lighter sugar-based sweetener like simple syrup or regular granulated sugar. This drink, though, riffs on the category and uses just an egg white for a lighter texture and less richness.
Any cocktail made with egg whites requires both a dry shake (without ice) and a wet shake (with ice) to first emulsify the ingredients and then chill them down. Including both steps is pivotal to the success of the cocktail and achieving the correct creamy, frothy consistency.
Why the Banana-Espresso Flip works
Banana and coffee are a perfect match in this cocktail, and blending sharp espresso with silky-sweet banana liqueur imparts just the right amount of flavor. For best results, use a high-quality banana liqueur, like Pairidaēza Crème de Banane Liqueur, which has fresh banana flavor and a touch of warming spice.
The dark rum offers a warming, lightly sweet base, and the simple syrup adds additional sweetness and richness to the cocktail. After the second shake, double-strain the cocktail through a fine wire-mesh strainer to remove any fine ice chips that were created in the cocktail shaker. Choose between additional espresso powder or aromatic nutmeg for a garnish to top off this sweet, nutty, delicious cocktail.
This recipe was developed by Lauren Covas; the text was written by Lucy Simon.
