Espresso Martini, in Ice Cream Form: The Story Behind the Flavor
There is a moment, somewhere between the first sip and the last drop, when an espresso martini stops being a drink and becomes a feeling. Rich. Bold. A little electric. We asked ourselves: what would it taste like to hold that feeling in a spoon? The answer is this pint.
The Cocktail That Took Over the World
If you have been to a cocktail bar in the last few years, you already know. The espresso martini is everywhere, and for good reason. What started as a late-night creation in 1980s London has become one of the defining drinks of this decade, the kind of cocktail that gets ordered at the end of dinner because no one is ready for the evening to end.
The numbers tell the story on their own. Espresso martini sales surged by 50% in the twelve months ending September 2023, climbing to become the third top-selling cocktail in the United States. Online searches for the drink grew by 89% among Gen Z in 2024 alone, with overall search volume reaching 1.3 million queries per month as of early 2025. Consumption jumped from 2% to 15% of all cocktails ordered between 2022 and 2024. By 2026, the espresso martini is not a trend. It is a fixture.
The reason is not hard to understand. The espresso martini sits at the intersection of two things people love deeply: coffee and a well-made cocktail. It is the pick-me-up and the wind-down in one glass. It is dessert and a nightcap and a reason to stay at the table a little longer. Shaken hard, served cold, with that signature foam on top. It is a drink that knows exactly what it is.
At Crème de Liqueur, we took one look at that cocktail moment and thought: what if we made it into something you could scoop?
The Crème de Liqueur Story: Born From a Love of Both
Crème de Liqueur is a 100% women and minority-owned frozen custard company, founded in Wisconsin and Massachusetts by co-founders Nisreen and Elizabeth. The idea was simple in the best way: take the sophistication of top-shelf spirits and blend them into the richest, creamiest frozen custard base possible. Adults-only, unapologetically indulgent, and always made with real ingredients from local and artisan partners.
The brand was built on a belief that dessert can be more than an afterthought. It can be the main event. It can be the reason you linger at the table, the thing guests are still talking about on the way home. And when the espresso martini was dominating cocktail culture, it made every kind of sense to bring that same energy into a pint.
“We love how food and drink have the power to elevate any and all situations. Shall we go on a spree and eat to enjoy ourselves, no matter what the occasion? Let’s clink spoons and cheers to wondrous times.”
What Is In the Pint, and Why It Works
The base: Chocolate frozen custard. Not ice cream. Frozen custard has a required minimum of 1.4% egg yolk solids by FDA standards, which gives it a texture that is noticeably denser, silkier, and more velvety than standard ice cream. The chocolate base was chosen deliberately because chocolate and coffee are natural partners. Each amplifies the other, deepening the richness and rounding out any bitterness.
The spirit: Real coffee vodka at 2% ABV. This is not flavoring and it is not an extract. It is coffee vodka, blended into the custard so the spirit is woven through every bite. The Espresso Martini is one of our more subtle flavors in terms of spirit-forwardness, which makes it a wonderful entry point for anyone who is new to liquor-infused frozen custard. The vodka does not announce itself. It simply makes everything taste more like itself.
The espresso: Real ground espresso powder, stirred into the base. Not coffee flavoring. Not a syrup. Ground espresso, which gives the custard a brightness and depth that you can taste from the very first spoonful.
The mix-in: Chocolate-covered espresso beans from Taza Chocolate, Somerville, MA. This is the detail that makes the pint. Taza is a stone ground, organic, Direct Trade chocolate maker that has been operating out of Somerville, Massachusetts since 2005. Their founder apprenticed under a traditional stone mill maker in Oaxaca, Mexico, and brought that craft back to New England. The result is a chocolate with bold, unrefined flavor and a satisfying texture that complements the creamy custard base in a way that mass-produced chocolate-covered beans simply cannot.
Together, these four components recreate the espresso martini experience in a way that goes beyond just tasting like the cocktail. The chocolate custard is the depth. The espresso is the brightness. The coffee vodka is the spirit. The Taza espresso beans are the texture that makes every bite its own small event.
“From the fresh ground espresso to the chocolate-covered espresso beans, each bite is a waking dream.”
Who This Pint Is For
This flavor was made for the espresso martini lover who wants to extend that feeling beyond last call. It was made for the coffee devotee who wants their dessert to pull double duty. It was made for the host who wants to bring out something that makes the table go quiet for one perfect moment.
The Coffee Lover
If your personality type is “cold brew before anything else,” this pint was made with you in mind. The combination of real espresso powder, coffee vodka, and Taza chocolate espresso beans means that every spoonful delivers on coffee flavor first. The spirit is subtle, the chocolate is bold, and the overall experience is closer to the world’s best coffee-flavored dessert than anything that reads as overtly boozy. It is one of our most subtle flavors in terms of spirit-forwardness, which makes it deeply loveable for those who want the coffee experience elevated rather than the cocktail experience front and center.
Girls Night
There is something about the espresso martini that has always belonged at a girls night. It is the cocktail that says the evening is just getting started, that dessert does not have to mean it is over. Bring out this pint after dinner and watch the table come alive. Scoop into glasses, pour a little extra shot of espresso on top if anyone is feeling ambitious, and let the conversation run long into the night. At 2% ABV with coffee vodka woven subtly through the base, it is the kind of treat that feels special without anyone needing to slow down. It is the grown-up dessert that earns its place at every girls night table.
It is the flavor you order first and the one you reach for last. It is the pint that disappears fastest at a dinner party and the one people ask about by name when they want to send a gift.
Ready to try it? The Espresso Martini Lovers Collection on Goldbelly (goldbelly.com/restaurants/creme-de-liqueur) includes two pints of the Espresso Martini frozen custard plus craft chocolate-covered espresso beans from Taza, making it the perfect gift or treat for any coffee lover in your life.
How to Serve It
Straight from the pint with a good spoon is always the right answer. But for the moments that call for a little extra ceremony, here are a few ways to make this pint its own event.
• The frozen affogato: Scoop one or two generous portions into a chilled glass and pour a fresh shot of hot espresso directly over the top. The custard melts at the edges into a creamy espresso sauce. It is two things at once and better than either.
• The espresso martini float: Pour your favorite ready-to-drink espresso martini cocktail into a glass over ice, then add a generous scoop of the Espresso Martini frozen custard right on top. As it melts, the custard turns the cocktail richer and creamier with every sip. It is an espresso martini and a dessert at the same time, and it is the kind of thing that makes guests ask you for the recipe.
• The tableside reveal: Scoop into chilled coupe glasses, add one Taza espresso bean on top, and serve them to the table all at once. The adults-only twist makes everyone feel like they are in on something.
• The cocktail upgrade: Add a small scoop to an actual freshly shaken espresso martini. The custard melts slowly into the drink, making it richer and creamier as you go. Technically an affogato. Technically a cocktail. All the way an experience.
• The solo Tuesday ritual: Pint. Couch. No explanation needed. You earned it.
FAQ: Espresso Martini Frozen Custard
What is espresso martini frozen custard?
Espresso martini frozen custard is a liquor-infused frozen dessert that takes the flavors of the classic espresso martini cocktail, vodka, espresso, and coffee, and blends them into a rich, egg yolk-based frozen custard. Crème de Liqueur’s version uses a chocolate frozen custard base, real ground espresso powder, coffee vodka at 2% ABV, and chocolate-covered espresso beans from Taza Chocolate in Somerville, Massachusetts.
How is frozen custard different from ice cream?
Frozen custard must contain at least 1.4% egg yolk solids by weight under FDA standards, while standard ice cream has no egg yolk requirement. The result is a noticeably denser, silkier, and more velvety texture. Frozen custard is also churned with significantly less air than ice cream, meaning more actual product in every bite.
Does the espresso martini frozen custard contain real alcohol?
Yes. Crème de Liqueur’s Espresso Martini frozen custard contains real coffee vodka at 2% ABV. This is an adults-only product sold to those 21 and over. At 2% ABV, it is lighter per serving than a light beer, with the spirit serving primarily to enhance the depth of flavor rather than to deliver an alcohol effect.
Is the espresso martini flavor very boozy or spirit-forward?
It is one of our most subtle flavors in terms of spirit-forwardness. The coffee vodka is woven through the base at 2% ABV, which means you taste the depth and warmth it brings without the spirit dominating. Coffee lovers tend to gravitate toward this one precisely because the espresso and chocolate lead, and the vodka simply amplifies everything around it. It is a wonderful starting point for anyone who is new to liquor-infused frozen custard.
What makes Crème de Liqueur’s espresso martini flavor different from other boozy ice cream brands?
A few things set it apart. The base is frozen custard, not standard ice cream, which means a richer, denser texture due to the required egg yolk content. The mix-in is chocolate-covered espresso beans from Taza Chocolate, a Direct Trade, stone ground craft chocolate maker in Somerville, MA, which delivers a more complex and boldly flavored crunch than commodity espresso beans. The ABV is 2%, which is intentionally lower than the 5% ABV found in brands like Tipsy Scoop and PROOF Hard Ice Cream, because the goal has always been flavor-forward rather than alcohol-forward. Crème de Liqueur is also 100% women and minority-owned and sources from local and artisan partners whenever possible.
Are there other brands that make espresso martini ice cream?
Yes, the category has grown alongside the cocktail’s popularity. PROOF Hard Ice Cream launched a Chocolate Espresso Martini flavor at Costco at 5% ABV. Tipsy Scoop, a New York-based liquor-infused ice cream brand, has offered cocktail-inspired flavors at 5% ABV from their scoop shops. What distinguishes Crème de Liqueur is the frozen custard base, the craft ingredient sourcing with Taza Chocolate espresso beans, the flavor-first 2% ABV formulation, and nationwide availability through Goldbelly.
Why is the espresso martini one of the most popular cocktails right now?
The espresso martini has had one of the most remarkable resurgences in cocktail history. Sales grew by 50% in the twelve-month period ending September 2023, making it the third top-selling cocktail in the US at the time. Online searches grew by 89% among Gen Z in 2024. By 2026, it is firmly on bar menus worldwide as the definitive caffeinated cocktail. The drink works because it sits at the intersection of two cultural obsessions: coffee and craft cocktails. It is the pick-me-up and the wind-down in one glass, and it photographs beautifully.
Can I use the espresso martini frozen custard in cocktails or other recipes?
Absolutely. Add a scoop to a ready-to-drink espresso martini for an instant float that gets creamier and richer as it melts. Pour a hot espresso shot over a scoop for a next-level affogato. Blend it into a boozy milkshake. Or serve it in chilled coupe glasses at the end of a dinner party and let it be the whole dessert course on its own.
How do I order Crème de Liqueur’s Espresso Martini frozen custard?
The Espresso Martini flavor is available as part of the Build-A-Box collection and the Espresso Martini Lovers Collection on Goldbelly at goldbelly.com/restaurants/creme-de-liqueur. Choose 3, 4, or 6 pints and mix and match with any other Crème de Liqueur flavors. All orders ship on Mondays and Tuesdays in dry ice to ensure every pint arrives perfectly frozen.
Is this product gluten-free or nut-free?
Crème de Liqueur frozen custard is made in a facility that processes wheat, milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, and soy. Every effort is made to avoid cross-contamination, but a fully gluten-free or nut-free guarantee cannot be made. Please refer to the full ingredient list for allergen information before ordering.
Cheers to One of Our Favorite Scoops
The espresso martini belongs at the end of a great evening. So does this pint. Whether you are serving it at a dinner party in chilled coupe glasses, gifting it to the coffee lover who already has everything, floating a scoop in a ready-to-drink espresso martini, or opening it on a quiet Tuesday when no occasion is needed, the Espresso Martini frozen custard is the kind of treat that makes the moment feel a little more worth savoring.
Order the Espresso Martini Lovers Collection or build your own box at goldbelly.com/restaurants/creme-de-liqueur. Spoons at the ready.
