Black Russian
50 ml Vodka, 20 ml Coffee liqueur
Mudslide
Vodka, coffee and cream - pudding in a glass, and proud of it.
Creamy
Easy
4 min
Photo: Mudslide cocktail with chocolate - tumbler (Italy, 2023) by Bruce The Deus · CC BY-SA 4.0 · All credits
Ingredients
Measures below are multiplied for 6 drinks. Unmeasurable amounts such as “a splash” are left as written.
- 180 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 180 ml line. Vodka
- 180 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 180 ml line. Coffee liqueur
- 180 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 180 ml line. Cream liqueur - The Irish cream sort - Baileys does the job beautifully
- 270 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 270 ml line. Double cream
- 1420 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 1420 ml line. Ice - Plenty - this one wants a hard, cold shake
Measured in Millilitres (UK). Sign in to read these in American measures. Print a kitchen card at this size.
What the jigger, the spoons and the jug hold, in millilitres and in fluid ounces, is on the measures reference.
Quick version
- Shake the three spirits and the cream hard with ice.
- Strain into a chilled glass and grate chocolate over the top.
Method
Pitcher (6 drinks)Pitcher (6 drinks) - about 2.23 l of measured ingredients, before ice and dilution.
Timings and per-glass steps below are written for one drink and are not scaled. A full jug takes longer to chill, so stir or shake until it is properly cold rather than by the clock, and pour over fresh ice one glass at a time.
- Chill a coupe glass - put it in the freezer while you work if there is room.
- Fill a shaker with ice and pour in the vodka, coffee liqueur, cream liqueur and cream.
- Shake hard for fifteen seconds, until the tin is properly cold in your hand.
- Strain into the chilled glass and grate a little chocolate over the surface.
Serve it
Volumes in this story are multiplied for the size above, along with the ingredients. Years, ratios and the capacities of glasses and jugs are left as written.
Mudslide
Somewhere between a cocktail and a dessert, which is exactly where it likes to be. It was born in the Caribbean resorts of the 1970s, where a cream drink was a way of selling a holiday, and it has been quietly making friends ever since - particularly after dinner, and particularly in November.
Getting it right
A mudslide is only as good as its shake. Cream needs cold and violence to come together, so fill the shaker properly, shake until the outside of the tin frosts, and do not skimp on the strain - a drink with ice shards in it turns thin in a minute. If you would rather have it frozen, blend everything with a cup of ice instead, and serve it with a spoon. And use real double cream: single cream makes a drink that tastes like milk with ambitions.
Tasting notes
Coffee and chocolate first, then cream, then a gentle warmth from the vodka that keeps it from being a pudding. Rich, silky and generous.
Grated chocolate over the top is the traditional finish, and a coffee bean or two is a handsome alternative if the grater is a step too far.
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