A delectable combination of bubbly tonic water and your favourite coffee, Coffee Tonic’s are a refreshing, (usually) alcohol-free cocktail that are easy to make and gaining in popularity
They have cool, crisp, and complex flavours – depending on the coffee you use, and can look amazing when composing ingredients in a glass – thanks to the way the coffee slowly descends through the tonic water. Simple, yet theatrical. It’s the perfect serve to impress your guests at parties, or to cool down during hotter days when you fancy elevating your iced coffee.
Little wonder then that the Coffee Tonic trend is sweeping through coffee houses and bars around the world.
In this blog post, we’ll take a look at what a Coffee Tonic is, what it tastes like, and how to make one yourself.
Our version of the drink is an Iced Coffee Clementine Tonic – but more on that in a bit.
What is Coffee Tonic?
Coffee Tonic is a refreshing alcohol-free cocktail, made by combining filter coffee with tonic water and ice. Sometimes, a fruit garnish, like an orange slice, is added as a final touch to give this drink an elegant finish.
They’re really simple to make. All you need is your favourite filter coffee, tonic water, ice, and a large glass to serve it in - we recommend a highball glass. They can also be made with alcohol.
What does Iced Coffee Clementine Tonic taste like?
Our Iced Coffee Clementine Tonic tastes like a refreshing coffee-flavoured sparkling soft drink. We find the clementine taste in the tonic compliments the deep coffee flavours well – adding a touch of refreshing sweetness.
You can adjust how much coffee to use depending on your personal taste. Adding more coffee, or an espresso, will result in a tonic with a slightly more overpowering taste of coffee. We find it tastes best when the coffee ratio is around 1 part coffee to 4 parts tonic.
For a step-by-step guide on how to make our Iced Coffee Clementine Tonic – check out the recipe below.
How to make an Iced Coffee Clementine Tonic
Prep Time: Around 4-5 minutes
Ingredients (per serve):
- 50ml Ueshima filter coffee (any blend)
- 200ml of Fevertree Spanish clementine tonic
- Ice cubes
- Fresh orange slice (optional)
You can make your filter coffee in a variety of ways. We recommend our signature pour over method. However, depending on what equipment you have available to you, you can make your filter coffee via a Cafetière, Chemex, AeroPress, or an Espresso from your bean to cup machine.
Method:
- Place your ice in a highball glass
- Pour in the Spanish clementine tonic, leaving a 2cm gap at the top. This should be around 200ml but may change depending on the size of your glass
- Slowly add your filter coffee to the glass
- Garnish with a slice of fresh orange
- Stir and enjoy
While you can stir immediately – you get an incredible visual effect if you serve while the coffee is still descending through the tonic. So maybe just put a cocktail stirrer in the drink for your guests to mix themselves when they’re ready to drink.
Note: If you’re making a few Iced Coffee Clementine Tonic cocktails at once, there’s no harm in making a larger batch of your filter coffee first – then leaving it to cool while you prepare your glasses. Remember to take out the coffee grounds if you want to stop the brewing process while it’s waiting to cool.
And if you need some tips on how to brew like a Japanese coffee master, check out our Brew Guides.