I’m starting to enjoy drinking a white russian now and again. At the liquor store a bottle of Kahlua is typically 20%-50% more expensive than the other brands of coffee liqueur available. Obviously part of this is because Kahlua’s brand is synonymous with coffee liqueur. But perhaps they deserve to be.
I’m not willing to buy 5-6 bottles of coffee liqueur and perform a blind taste test, and a bottle is likely to last 6 months or more. I haven’t tried enough brands to compare and contrast them, but maybe you drunks–I mean connoisseurs–have. What say you? Is name-brand Kahlua worth the 50% markup? Why or why not? If not Kahlua, what other brands are recommended, and what ones do you recommend against?
Now to make myself an off-brand white russian and wonder what I’m missing, if anything…
I’m a fan of Toasted Almond, and I make it with generic Kahlua and generic amaretto and it works just fine. Now, I don’t have a discrimination palate, but I can usually detect something that’s off, and neither of the non-name brands seemed to be off.
For a higher octane treat, try Patron’s XO Cafe coffee tequila. It’s a potent 70 proof but very sweet and coffee-y. It’s also on sale near me (Binnys - Chicagoland) for $8/btl.
Kahlua works better than other coffee flavoured liqueurs IMHO for black russians. Its more subtle than other brands, whcih can be too tangy. (PS I used to be a cocktail bartender in an earlier epoch of my existence, but do not drink coffee which is why I probably like Kahlua’s milder taste).
To me its not a White Russian without Kahlua[sup]®[/sup] (and Kettle One[sup]®[/sup] for that matter). In fact we even had a name for a non-Kahlua White Russian, a Dirty Mother. :eek:
I can tolerate cheaper vodka in one (barely) but not gross, sickly-sweet, almondy or chocolatey lesser liqueurs. Especially since, like the OP says, a bottle lasts for months…
Yeah, if I go through a bottle every 4 months, I’ll save $12 a year by getting a cheaper brand.
But there’s the principle of the thing. If Kahlua really is superior I’ll pay the markup. If it’s all branding then I can’t do it. I know also that tastes differ, so there can be no definitive answer, but it’s worth asking for opinions.
The game is, every time The Dude drinks a white russian, you drink a white russian. I’m not sure how many that’s gonna be, but you’re gonna be on your ass by the end of the movie.
Thanks. We are just beginning to experiment with one… the “regular coffee” type listed in your link. It is aging in the cabinet now but it seems really bitter so far. Think the honey may help? Any tips or ways to customize? We like Kaulua (sp?) but this isn’t relly like that so much.
A little aging and a little honey can really take the edges off. Use your favorite coffee, brewed normally. The last batch we made used…Yuban, I think. I’ll have to ask the wife.
Uh-oh. I used fresh ground coffee but made it extra strong because the recipies said “Don’t use american coffee it’s too weak”. Also, they said to strain it after two weeks. Strain it? Is there going to be something growing in there? After boiling? With a cup and a half of vodka?
