The Secret to Better Coffee Is Cocktail Bitters

These days, coffee needs no introduction to the bar. The morning brew has become a stalwart ingredient on bar menus worldwide, showcased in classic cocktails from the Espresso Martini to the Carajillo. Inversely, a staple bar ingredient might be the secret to a better cup of coffee.

Here’s why you should be adding a few dashes of cocktail bitters to your coffee.

Why should you add bitters to coffee?

At Dawn, a café and market located in Santa Barbara’s Drift Hotel, a few dashes of bitters are added to its Bonfire Cappuccino. The cappuccino itself is simple — a shot of espresso topped with steamed milk and foam — but the addition of Angostura bitters and a touch of cherry smoke (created with a smoke gun) provides a deeply complex flavor profile. This flavor-packed trick works with any style of coffee, from a cold brew to a flat white.

“Coffee already has roasted, smoky undertones, and the aromatic bitters pick those up and carry them further,” says the Drift’s food and beverage manager, Michael Wiggins. And while some coffee drinks are flavored with sugar-packed syrups or made from beans infused with artificial flavorings, cocktail bitters can add flavor and depth without sweetness.

“Instead of covering up the espresso, the bitters round it out and smooth any sharp edges while letting the natural flavors shine,”  says Wiggins. “It’s about balance, not sweetness.”

What are cocktail bitters?

Cocktail bitters are used to add spice and complexity to mixed drinks. You can think of bitters like an extract you’d bake with — use them sparingly as they pack a serious punch. Bitters are made by infusing a high-proof neutral spirit with a range of botanical ingredients such as gentian root, cinnamon, citrus peels, cacao, or even chiles.

One of the most ubiquitous bitters brands, Angostura, is Wiggins’ go-to. It is made with a blend of spices, including cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, and allspice, with a few ingredients that act as the bittering agent: gentian root and cinchona bark (which has naturally occurring quinine, the ingredient that gives tonic water its signature bite).

How to add bitters to coffee

This coffee hack could not be easier: simply add 1 to 2 dashes or drops of bitters to a single serving of coffee. Any kind of bitters will work, especially bottlings flavored with ingredients whose aromas are already found in coffee, such as orange bitters, chocolate bitters, whiskey barrel-aged bitters, or Peychaud’s bitters, which are flavored with cloves and anise.

“Start small, stir well, and taste before serving,” says Wiggins. “Bitters are potent, so the trick is restraint. Stir them in so they integrate fully, then taste. It should feel balanced and seamless, not like an add-on. Once you dial it in, it becomes second nature.”