If you ’ve ever turn in an situation you likely know the ubiquitous K - Cup machine , made by Keurig . It quickly and painlessly dispenses single - service of process of the hot beverage of your option . Even , it change by reversal out , if that beverage is 100 - proof .
We just happened to have one of these discarded machines lie around , and adjudicate to see what would hap if we used it to make hot , boozy toothsomeness instead of boring ol’ coffee . biz on .
It ’s Friday good afternoon , you ’ve made it through the longsighted week , and it ’s time forHappy Hour , Gizmodo ’s hebdomadary booze column . A cocktail shaker full of founding , science , and alcohol . It ’s The Jetsons on a bender .
WARNINGS
Like you did n’t know this was coming .
1 . K - Cup machine are meant to be filled with pee and water only . Using anything else will probably ruin it .
2.Alcohol is inflammable .
3 . You should not put alcohol in a K - Cup machine .
4 . If you do put alcohol in a K - Cup machine ( which is stupid ) , make certain you do it in a well - ventilate area , ideally outside , as alcohol vapors are highly combustible .
5 . Maybe have a fire extinguisher nearby , too .
6 . If you must pour water on the K - Cup machine to extinguish flames , for God ’s saki disconnect it from the bulwark first . piss + Electricity = Bad .
Given all of the above warnings , you may be wondering why we put out attempting this at all . Because like all keen groundbreaker , we were both rummy and stunned .
The Hypothesis
While the musical theme of pouring neat booze into the K - Cup machine and seeing what befall was appealing , we decide this was a bad thought . This machine makes full cups of beverages , and that does n’t countenance for much of a balanced feeling profile . If we wanted to make an alcohol-dependent java shot , we would have cannibalize a Nespresso machine or something .
The idea here is to make something of mixed - drink metier . By fill in alcohol for some of the H2O , we would be limiting the amount of dilution . And , as we watch in our piece on bitterness , alcoholic beverage is a very beneficial flavor extractor . We hoped this might get us a bolder - flavored boozing .
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The other ground we add water to the equating is safety . As we ’ve discussed before , when you ’re light up a drink on attack , what you ’re really fall are the vapors that come off of it , not the fluid itself . Higher - proof spirits produce more vaporisation than spirits with more water in them . So , by adding water , we are cutting the alcohol by volume ( ABV ) of the solution . This heighten its simmering temperature ( pure fermentation alcohol boils at around 171 degree F when at sea level ) , and decreases the amount of flammable vaporization that comes off it , which is peculiarly crucial when you ’re exposing it to a heating constituent .
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The Experiment, Or: K-Cup Irish Coffee
Here ’s how we made our first successful K - Cup drank .
Ingredients :
body of water
Cheap Bourbon
1 Dark Roast K - Cup
1 teaspoonful brown sugar
Irish Cream to try
Note : In the video you see a really nice bottleful of 10 year honest-to-goodness Bulleit bourbon . I promise you we did not utilize that in this experiment . We are not giant . We used Jim Beam . The Bulleit bottle was just more photogenic .
Directions :
1 . Pour two parts pee to one part whisky into the Keurig ’s artificial lake . Slosh it around gently to blend . We tried it with a 3:1 ratio , but the resulting drinks were too watery . The 2:1 ratio is just right .
2 . Return the reservoir to the K - Cup machine ( which is in a well - air place , good ? )
3 . put in the K - Cup of your choice , preferably a coloured roast ( we used one from Tully ’s ) and select the stage setting for the second smallest loving cup ( 6 ounces ) , then hit Brew .
4 . The final result should be a hot cup of pre - spiked chocolate , which is moderately tasty on its own . However we suggest stirring in a teaspoonful of brown sugar , and then adding a splash or two of Irish pick ( we used Bailey ’s ) to try . you could also utilize whipped pick , if you prefer .
Other Recipes
Using the same whisky / water mix as above , switch in a spicy chocolate K - Cup alternatively of the coffee . It will be tasty as is , but we recommend adding a twain marshmallow and one ounce of Peppermint Schnapps . It ’s like drinking a blistering , boozy Girl Scout cookie .
Or you’re able to sub in a black tea K - Cup for making raging toddies ( though we prefer our spicy hot toddy with brandy , so you might as well make that substitution , too ) . Once brewed , add the juice of a 1/4 of a gamboge , a few cloves if you ’ve got ’em , and honey to savor .
An unmatched , but rather delicious one we tried is something we call the Gin Zinger . Use a lemon zinger K - Cup and substitute a ironical - ish gin for whisky ( we used Gordon ’s ) , retain the 2:1 H2O to spirit proportion . Then add up a little honey to taste . It ’s surprisingly novel . We commend it with raspberry zinger tea , too .
Worth It?
So , are K - Cup drink that much of an improvement ? Is it deserving risking burn down your house ( or at least ruining a Keurig machine ) to achieve these bluff new feel . In a word , no . Do n’t get us wrong , all of the above drinks we made were tasty , but it ’s nothing you could n’t achieve through well-off , safer method . For example , if you wanted a strong Irish coffee , use more grounds when you brew . If you want a stronger flavour hot toddy , let the teatime steep longer . If you require chocolatier hot chocolate , use more chocolate .
That enounce , we regret nothing . We managed to debar setting anything on fire , and the K - Cup machine seems to have survived ( for now ) . More to the point , we answered a question that ’s been bugging us for years , and is n’t that really the point of skill ? Let ’s go with yes .
Anyway , it ’s in conclusion lovesome outside , which mean that if you ’re want a new and improved breakfast beverage , check out our recipe for immature cracker bonbon . Or , if you want something to really muck up your mind , tick outour original formula for Cold - Brew Irish Coffee . We ’ll be back next week , with moreHappy Hour .
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