Though its cream-spiked counterpart usually hogs the spotlight, the Black Russian was the original vodka-and-Kahlua concoction, created in the late 1940s at the start of the Cold War. Gustave Tops, a bartender at the Hotel Metropole bar in Brussels created the vodka-based cocktail for his patron Perle Mesta, the American ambassador to Luxembourg. While meant to allude to the dark times following World War II, the drink ultimately inspired a slew of easygoing classics, from the White Russian to the Mudslide, which leads us to suspect that those drinks might be double agents. They’re happy—too happy.
The Essentials
Vodka
Kahlua
Ingredients
2
oz
Vodka
1
oz
Kahlua
Method
- Add all ingredients to a rocks glass filled with ice.
- Stir gently.
Vodka
•
Sweet
•
Easy
Mudslide
If you don’t often frequent chain restaurants, you may be more familiar with the Mudslide’s trendy cousin, the White Russian. Though similar in flavor, the...