The espresso martini is not going anywhere. Industry data has orders up roughly 300% on 2022 levels, with the #espressomartini hashtag clearing two billion views on TikTok alone (ABC Bartending College, 2026). The Cocktail Porter 2026 trend report places it squarely inside the broader Martini Renaissance happening across the on-trade (Cocktail Porter). Your venue almost certainly sells more espresso martinis than any other single cocktail.

Which is exactly why your house version needs to be better than your competitors'. Here are five upgrades we coach into venue teams when 3Two1 runs masterclasses — every one tested behind a working bar, every one buildable on a Friday-night service.

Why the standard espresso martini falls short

The classic Dick Bradsell 1980s build is vodka, coffee liqueur, espresso. Three ingredients, one of which (the coffee liqueur, usually Kahlúa) carries 90% of the flavour, the body and the sugar. When your espresso martini tastes too sweet, too thin, or "samey" — that's the coffee liqueur.

The upgrades below all work the same lever. We add a second flavour layer to the liqueur, change the spirit, or change the texture. The customer gets a noticeably better drink. The bar gets a more defensible $24 price point.

1. The Vanille upgrade — best one-ingredient swap

Replace 10 mL of your coffee liqueur with 10 mL of Giffard Vanille de Madagascar Liqueur. The Madagascar vanilla doesn't compete with the coffee — it sits underneath it, fills out the mid-palate, and stretches the finish. The first sip tastes the same as your house build. The aftertaste is what changes.

Spec: 45 mL vodka · 20 mL coffee liqueur · 10 mL Giffard Vanille · 30 mL fresh espresso · shake hard, double strain, coupe, three coffee beans.

2. The Cacao Brown switch — for the dessert-cocktail menu

Swap the coffee liqueur entirely for 25 mL of Giffard Crème de Cacao Brown. Cacao Brown is the dark-chocolate, slightly bittersweet sibling of crème de cacao — and against espresso it behaves the way good dark chocolate does next to espresso in a tiramisu. The drink reads as "espresso and dark chocolate," not as "coffee and sugar."

Spec: 45 mL vodka · 25 mL Giffard Cacao Brown · 30 mL fresh espresso · 5 mL Giffard Vanilla Syrup · shake hard, double strain, coupe, dust cocoa.

"People want a drink that looks as good on their Instagram as it tastes in their glass." — ABC Bartending College, espresso martini revival report

3. The Espresso Martiki — rum, pineapple, no compromise

This is Martin Hudek's recipe from Maybe Sammy in Sydney, published in the Giffard Sip n' Surf cocktail book. It swaps vodka for Jamaican rum, replaces the coffee liqueur with orgeat, and adds unsweetened pineapple juice. The result is tropical, bittersweet, and absolutely a coffee cocktail.

Spec (Martin Hudek, Maybe Sammy):

• 15 mL Giffard Orgeat Syrup
• 45 mL Rum-Bar Gold Jamaican Rum
• 30 mL unsweetened pineapple juice
• 1 shot fresh espresso

Shake hard, double strain into a coupe, garnish with edible flowers.

4. The Cacao + Black Tears flip — for the dark spirit drinker

Black Tears Cuban Spiced Rum is spiced with Cuban cacao and coffee already — so building an espresso martini around it doubles down on those notes. The result is a "black" espresso martini that still reads as a martini, with the spice giving it a longer finish than vodka ever delivers.

Spec:

• 40 mL Black Tears Cuban Spiced Rum
• 15 mL coffee liqueur
• 10 mL Giffard Crème de Cacao Brown
• 25 mL fresh espresso
• Shake hard, double strain, coupe, orange-peel-and-coffee garnish

5. The low-ABV "Affogato Martini" — your 11pm cocktail

The Cocktail Porter trend report and Hospitality Connect both flag low-ABV builds as one of the dominant 2026 patterns. The Affogato Martini drops the vodka entirely and uses Giffard Vanille and a splash of buttermilk in its place — restaurant-friendly, dessert-replacement, sub-12% ABV.

Spec:

• 30 mL Giffard Vanille de Madagascar
• 20 mL coffee liqueur
• 30 mL fresh espresso
• 10 mL buttermilk (or oat milk for dairy-free)
• Shake, double strain, coupe, dust cocoa

"The espresso martini isn't just a trend — it's a barometer for where the industry is heading. Customers want bartenders who understand craft, can execute consistently, and bring creativity to their work."

The bartender's quality checklist

• Fresh espresso pulled within 2 minutes of shaking. Not cold-brew, not pre-batched.
• Three large ice cubes in the shaker, not a fistful of small cubes — small ice dilutes faster than it chills.
• Double-strain through a fine cone, every time.
• Crema as the only garnish, or three whole coffee beans. Never sprinkle ground coffee.
• Glass pre-chilled in the fridge, not iced in front of the customer.

Pricing, margin and how to put these on a menu

Five variations is two too many for most cocktail lists, but two is the sweet spot. We see the best results when venues run the standard espresso martini at the lead price point and offer one premium variation — the Vanille upgrade or the Cacao + Black Tears flip — at a $3 to $4 premium. Guests who want "the espresso martini" still get it. Guests who want to feel like they ordered something interesting trade up.

The margin maths is friendlier than most bartenders assume. A 15 mL liqueur addition on a $24 cocktail adds roughly $0.90 to the pour cost when you are buying Giffard at wholesale. The variation lifts the ticket by $3 to $4. That is a clean 70%+ gross margin on the upgrade portion, on a drink the customer was already going to order.

Two menu-engineering notes from venues that have run these specs.

Name the variation, not the technique. "Madagascar Vanilla Martini" sells better than "Espresso Martini with Vanille." The guest reads it as a different drink, which is what justifies the premium.

Photograph the crema. A clean two-finger crema cap is the entire visual story of the drink, and it is the single image that lifts espresso-martini sales when you put it on the menu insert or the table tent. The bartender's job is to make it; the marketing's job is to show it.

Further reading

For the broader trend picture, see our 2026 Australian bar trends. For the syrup logic behind your menu, read Building a profitable cocktail syrup programme.