Today's cocktail will get you started and keep you going. I hate to seem cliché, but this really is a phenomenal cocktail and you need to try it if you never have. We first experienced this at Stephen Starr's Atlantic City Continental Restaurant. Stephen Starr creates wonderful restaurants and has turned the Philadelphia scene into one worth going out for. The Continental started in Philly but they made a second version in AC and it's a must go, for cocktails and food. I'll probably never get to actually thank Mr. Starr for all the good times and good food I've had because of him, but I'll say it here anyway - Thank you!

The cocktail I am referring to is a modern concoction blending the best of the European cafe with the best of trick vodka drinks. It is none other than the Espresso Martini!

Follow up:

There's a lot of ways to mix coffee with vodka, so I'm gonna give you two variants: one for the power cocktail group that either has a well stocked bar or doesn't mind stopping by the liquor store on a whim, and one for the rest of you. The Espresso Martini is a simple drink at heart but it packs a wallop. Vodka, Kahlua, and espresso... but what proportions... what vodka? No worries, Jack's got your back.

The Espresso Martini:

• 1.5 oz Vodka
• 1 oz Kahlua
• 1 oz espresso

The Variant:

• 1.5 oz Absolut Vanilia Vodka
• 1 oz Kahlua
• 1 oz espresso

absolut.com

You know the drill: shake the 3 ingredients on ice and strain into a martini glass. Extra credit if you can float 3 coffee beans on the top! Now I'm not really much of an espresso drinker so I cut back on the espresso just a bit. You have to leave it in though, cause if you skip it, all you're doing is making a fancy Black Russian. You'll also want to brew the espresso and let it cool - using it hot will melt too much ice and dilute the cocktail.

One final note: if you don't have an espresso machine, don't try this with just regular coffee. That would be about the same as having coffee with skim milk instead of cream. Life is for living - do you really want to water everything you do down to the point where it's not fun anymore?

~Viva!~