Featured Libation: Nitro Coffee
For those who like their caffeine kick cold and kegged, nitro has you covered. Alcoholic it isn’t, but it does bear a certain resemblance to Guinness in more ways than one. Not only does the introduction of nitrous oxide grant the cold brew coffee the theatrical, cascading charm of white on black for which the Irish stout has become world-famous, but it also results in a similar mouthfeel. Nitrogenated coffee has texture in spades, offering a richer, creamier and above all, colder coffee experience for the hotter months ahead.
According to Wayne Lew and Jane Spindler, founders of Manchester’s North Tea Power and Liverpool’s newly opened Mother Espresso, nitro is not just a feat of balance and complexity but a celebration of the craft of speciality coffee. Commercial coffee shops typically favour consistency over experimentation, offering little more than a stripped-back and over-roasted brew served too hot to actually. Mother’s homemade nitro brew is another story. It invites us to slow things down and discover those lesser-known, berry-fresh, fruity notes. ‘It’s easy to forget that coffee is a fruit, basically a cherry’ says Wayne. ‘Nitro helps you to discover coffee’s more subtle, naturally sweeter qualities.’
With a range of purpose-built taps serving nitro coffee (and a carefully-selected beer or two), Mother plays with brewing techniques and delivery methods to highlight a fruitful crossroads between craft beer and speciality coffee. ‘That’s the fun of it all,’ says Wayne, ‘there’s real room for creative overlap. As with any craft, there’s always something or someone to learn from. Everything is always a work in progress.’
Their recently-developed, cherry-infused nitro brew is a testament to that creative overlap. With a light, velvety texture, sweet finish and cherry zest, the new brew stands up on its own whilst also hinting at its cocktail-friendly potential.
Mother Espresso will be serving homemade nitro cold brew fresh from the tap all summer. You can find them on Wood Street, Liverpool city centre. WH
Words by Will Halbert
Image Credits by Courtesy of Mother Espresso
