On paper, I shouldn’t just like the Spanish Espresso at Huber’s. The legendary drink served at Portland, Oregon’s oldest restaurant—established in 1879—combines a number of components I are likely to keep away from in cocktails: warmth, whipped cream and a present. And but, once I downed one on a wet Sunday night, it hit the spot in a manner no different cocktail has come near in latest reminiscence.
I’ve been burned by scorching cocktails sufficient occasions that I normally avoid them. I typically discover Sizzling Toddies and their ilk to be overly diluted, cloying or troublesome to devour within the slender window of time they’re on the optimum temperature to drink. However Huber’s is disarming. The historic restaurant’s sweeping mahogany bar, vest- and tie-clad bartenders, arched stained glass skylights and unpretentious old-school vibe are so charming that it appears mistaken to not order the flagship cocktail.
For a lot of, Huber’s Spanish Espresso wants no introduction. The 145-year-old restaurant didn’t invent the drink, however James Louie, a present co-owner, actually put it on the map within the U.S. Within the Seventies, to draw extra clients to the bar, Louie added the drink—a cousin of the carajillo—to the menu and turned it right into a present. The hard-hitting cocktail developed a fervent fan base in Portland earlier than spreading across the nation.
Ready tableside, the cocktail begins with a flourish of triple sec and overproof rum set ablaze in a sugar-rimmed glass, solely to be extinguished with a dramatic free pour of Kahlúa, a few ounces of regionally roasted espresso and a blanket of barely sweetened whipped cream dusted with nutmeg. Usually, I really feel awkward watching meals or drinks being ready tableside—I can’t assist however think about the server would relatively work in non-public, however Huber’s bartenders are so deft; it will actually be a disgrace to have the drink constructed out of sight. Plus, the hearth present serves a goal: The blue flame burns lengthy sufficient to totally warmth the glass, making certain that the drink is served scorching and stays that manner.
The cocktail additionally manages to keep away from one of many pitfalls that many whipped cream–topped drinks succumb to. Somewhat than clumping unattractively or melting away fully, the pillowy cream stays intact, performing as the best buffer between the caramelized sugar rim and the bitter, boozy beverage hidden under. Served in a tempered tavern glass, the drink is the proper measurement: sufficiently small to devour earlier than it cools, however with sufficient chew to make it really feel substantial. It’s so pleasurable to drink that it’s made me rethink my stance on scorching cocktails, tableside service and whipped cream altogether. For the formidable residence bartender, the ritual may be replicated with an extended match and a cautious contact. However for everybody else, this drink is a should when visiting Portland.
