The espresso martini has become a favourite among cocktail drinkers, and who can blame them?
It’s delicious, comes with some much-needed caffeine when you’re flagging at your after-work drinks, and they look remarkably sophisticated too. Flavour, zip, aesthetic: the three amigos.
However, one of the essential ingredients to a good espresso martini has an unsavoury background that might scratch it off your go-to drinks list.
Espresso martinis are typically made with vodka, coffee liqueur, a shot of espresso, and some sugar syrup. So simple, so tasty.
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However, the coffee liqueur might fall foul of your dietary requirements, especially if the one being used is Kahlúa.
Kahlúa is also commonly used in Baby Guinnesses, everyone’s favourite little sugary shot, and it’s a component of White Russians, Black Russians, and Mudslides too.
The trouble with it is that it’s not suitable for vegetarians or vegans thanks to its manufacturing process.
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And what, I hear you ask, on Earth is an animal derivative doing in a coffee liqueur?
Apparently, it’s down to how the sugar is refined.
"We can confirm that Kahlúa is NOT suitable for vegetarians or vegans. This is because of the sugar refinement," Kahlúa said in a statement.
"It appears there was some confusion as, prior to 2016, Kahlúa was deemed suitable. At this time, Kahlúa is not suitable for vegetarians or vegans."
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Craig van Niekerk, Malibu and Kahlúa’s global vice-president of marketing, added: "We can clarify that Kahlúa is not directly manufactured with any animal derivatives.
“However, it’s important to note that a bone char filtration process, which does involve contact with animal derivatives, is employed by one of our sugar suppliers during refinement.
"This widely accepted practice in the sugar industry currently prevents us from categorising Kahlúa as suitable for vegetarian and vegan diets."
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It’s not just Kahlúa that’s affected, but Malibu too.
Social media was soon awash with upset espresso martini fans who can’t fathom the animal-based news.
"I feel like the absolute most f**king stupid non-vegetarian things I know of are Kahlúa and most wine, said one X user. "Why the F**K are you filtering s**t with animal bones and swim bladders?? What the F**K??
"How did you manage to arrive at booze that isn't even vegetarian, let alone vegan??"
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Another shocked user shared: "I just found out Kahlúa is not vegan anymore...don't text."
"Damn, who knew that Kahlúa by itself is not vegan?” asked another. “Glad I checked before I indulged.”
In an increasingly vegetarian-friendly world, it’s always surprising to hear that manufacturers haven’t taken steps to remove animal components from non-meat products.
It’s not quite as stunning as the 2016 revelation that the not-so-new-anymore plastic five pound notes contain beef tallow, but it’s not far off.
Rachael Davis