30 Specialty Coffee Drinks: 15 Classic Recipes Explained

Published: Oct 13, 2026 Author: World Gafei Last Updated: Oct/13/2026 181 views

Learn how to make 15 classic specialty coffee drinks like cinnamon coffee, Irish coffee, and espresso gelato with exact ingredients and steps.

You’ve mastered your espresso shots and maybe even your pour-over game—but what about the dozens of classic coffee drinks served in cafés around the world? These aren’t just random café specials; they’re time-tested recipes with specific ingredients, techniques, and presentation rules. Whether you’re looking to impress guests or simply explore new flavors, knowing how to make these drinks puts you steps ahead of the average coffee drinker.

Below are 15 classic specialty-style coffee recipes, each with exact ingredients and preparation steps—from cinnamon coffee with orange marmalade to flaming Irish coffee—so you can recreate them precisely as intended.

Cinnamon Coffee (CINNAMON COFFEE)

This simple drink builds flavor through citrus marmalade and aromatic spice.

Ingredients: 1 shot of coffee, 2 teaspoons orange marmalade, 1 cinnamon stick
Method: Add marmalade to the cup, pour in coffee, stir with cinnamon stick. Serve immediately.

Espresso Gelato (CAFÉ CON GELOTO)

A frozen espresso dessert that highlights contrast between hot and cold.

Ingredients: 60ml espresso, 100g vanilla ice cream
Method: Spoon vanilla ice cream into a ceramic cup, then pour espresso over it. Serve in a porcelain container.

Almond Coffee (CAFÉ AMARETTO)

A spiced warm coffee with almond liqueur and crunchy toppings.

Ingredients: 1 serving hot coffee, a little sugar, a little white rum, crushed roasted almonds, 1–2 whole almonds
Method: Stir coffee with sugar, add white rum, then top with crushed almonds. Garnish the saucer with whole almonds.

A creamy coffee drink with nutty crunch and sherry aroma.

Ingredients: 1 serving hot coffee, 1 cup milk, a little sherry, whipped cream, chopped toasted walnuts
Method: Combine milk and coffee in a cup, add a touch of sherry. Top with whipped cream and sprinkle with walnuts.

Irish Coffee

A warming cocktail of coffee, whiskey, sugar, and cream—carefully prepared.

Ingredients: 1 serving hot coffee, Irish whiskey or mint liqueur, sugar, cream, Irish coffee glassware
Method: Add sugar and liquor to a heated Irish coffee glass, melt sugar with gentle heat (can ignite whiskey for blue flame), pour in hot coffee, top with whipped cream.

Note: Avoid overheating the glass. Optional flaming step produces a blue flame.

Brandy Flame Coffee

A flaming coffee cocktail using lemon peel and brandy.

Ingredients: 1 serving hot coffee, lemon, brandy
Method: Sweeten coffee, spiral-cut lemon peel, soak in brandy, ignite, and place quickly on cup rim.

Orange Tequila Coffee

A citrusy coffee with tequila and decorative orange zest.

Ingredients: 1 serving hot coffee, 10–25g tequila, 1 orange
Method: Add tequila to hot coffee, garnish with carved orange peel.

Valencia Coffee (CAFÉ VALENCIA)

A spiced coffee-milk drink with citrus and cinnamon.

Ingredients: 1 serving coffee, 1 cup milk, a little Cointreau, lemon peel, cinnamon powder
Method: Use strong coffee, add hot milk, float Cointreau and lemon peel, dust with cinnamon, stir before serving.

Note: Soak lemon peel in Cointreau beforehand.

Rum Milk Coffee (RUM CAFÉ AU LAIT)

A layered café au lait with rum, liqueur, cream, and fruit juice.

Ingredients: 1 serving latte, 1 cup milk, a little Kahlúa, a little white rum, whipped cream, orange juice, orange peel, sugar
Method: Mix Kahlúa, rum, sugar in cup, add coffee and milk, top with whipped cream, orange juice, and peel.

Royal Coffee (CAFÉ ROYAL)

A dramatic coffee with a flaming sugar cube.

30 Specialty Coffee Drinks: 15 Classic Recipes Explained

Ingredients: 1 serving coffee, 1 sugar cube, brandy, royal coffee spoon
Method: Place sugar cube on special spoon, soak in brandy, ignite, then add coffee after flame dies.

Note: Stir after sugar dissolves and flame extinguishes.

Burgundy Coffee (CAFÉ BOURGOGNE)

A wine-infused coffee with cream foam and syrup.

Ingredients: 1 serving coffee, 2 teaspoons red wine, cream, a little grenadine
Method: Add wine and grenadine to coffee, whip cream with a bit of wine and syrup, float on top.

Note: Choose quality red wine—Burgundy region preferred.

Kalua Milk Coffee (KALUA AU LAIT)

An iced coffee blended with Kalua liqueur and milk.

Ingredients: 1 serving iced coffee, a little Kalua, 1 cup milk
Method: Blend Kalua, coffee, and milk, pour over ice, top with crushed ice.

Note: Serve in a stylish glass.

Mazagran

A wine-forward coffee drink with citrus and spice.

Ingredients: 1 serving coffee, 2 teaspoons red wine, sugar, 1 lemon slice, 1 cinnamon stick
Method: Mix sugar into coffee, add warm red wine, float lemon slice, serve with cinnamon stick.

Note: This is a coffee cocktail; avoid serving in glass.

Wine Cappuccino (VIRO CAPPUCINO)

A chilled layered coffee and wine drink with foam and spice.

Ingredients: 1 serving iced coffee, a little red wine, whipped cream, cinnamon powder
Method: Shake coffee and wine, pour gently, top with cream, dust with cinnamon. Serve in a glass.

Cappuccino with Crushed Ice

An iced shaken coffee cocktail with mint, cream, and chocolate.

Ingredients: 1 serving iced coffee, 1 shot mint liqueur, whipped cream, crushed ice, 2 chocolate sticks
Method: Shake all ingredients, pour into cup, garnish with chocolate.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is cinnamon coffee and how is it made?

Cinnamon coffee is made with one shot of espresso, two teaspoons of orange marmalade, and stirred with a cinnamon stick. The marmalade is added to the cup first, then the coffee, and stirred with the cinnamon stick before serving.

How do you make Irish coffee?

Irish coffee is prepared by adding sugar and Irish whiskey to a heated Irish coffee glass to melt the sugar (optionally igniting the whiskey for effect), then pouring in hot coffee and topping with whipped cream. Use proper glassware to avoid breakage.

What’s in an espresso gelato drink?

Espresso gelato consists of 60ml of espresso poured over 100g of vanilla ice cream, served in a ceramic cup and presented in a porcelain container.

What’s the correct way to make a flaming brandy coffee?

To make a flaming brandy coffee, sweeten your coffee, spiral-cut a piece of lemon peel, soak it in brandy, ignite the peel, and place it quickly on the rim of the coffee cup. Do this carefully and away from flammable surfaces.

Can I make mazagran without using a glass cup?

Yes, mazagran is recommended to be served in a non-glass cup. It is a coffee cocktail made with coffee, red wine, sugar, lemon, and cinnamon, and should not be served in a traditional glass.

Recommended FrontStreet Beans for Coffee Cocktails

For these spiced and liquor-infused coffee drinks, try FrontStreet Coffee’s Ethiopia Yirgacheffe for bright citrus and floral notes, their Classic Blend for balanced body and crema ideal in layered drinks, or the Black Cocoa Blend for deep chocolate tones that complement rum or whiskey bases. Each brings distinct flavour profiles to coffee cocktails like Irish Coffee, Rum Milk Coffee, or Mazagran. Freshly roasted within 5 days · Orders placed before 17:00 ship the same day · Next-day delivery across most of Guangdong Province.

FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou China, selling freshly roasted beans from its own farm in Yunnan as well as dozens of carefully selected single-origin beans from around the world for both pour-over and espresso. The products deliver consistently excellent quality and great value, with shipping within 24 hours. Guangzhou's FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers, and the beans are now available online at the Tmall 。