Espresso Martini Granita cocktail recipe

Picture yourself on Italy’s Amalfi Coast – in a parallel universe, preferably, where every influencer and their dog isn’t stinking up the joint. The cool evening breeze laps at your waterfront table. A sharply dressed waiter clears the last few plates from an Instagram-worthy dinner. Before they head back to the kitchen they pause and look you dead in the eye.

“Dolce?” they ask. But before you can remember how to ask for the dessert menu in Italian, another waiter swans past carrying two frosted coupettes of what looks to be a sugary, brunette-coloured snow. “Whatever those are,” you blurt out. Suave. 

Those, as you come to learn, are Espresso Martini Granitas – a decidedly chic evolution of the classic cocktail we all know and love. Granitas, you see, are pretty common in Italy. Good ones are almost crunchy in texture (somewhere between an icy pole and a slushy), and straddle the line between drink and dessert in a way that only enhances their charm. The bitterness of the espresso, the creamy sweetness of the liqueur, the bite of the vodka… molto bloody bene!

They’re usually made with fresh fruit, but not this one. Whichever genius first decided to deploy vodka, coffee liqueur, a good slug of espresso and some sugar syrup to the granita has our hat. And even if we’re almost 100% certain that the Espresso Martini Granita has no traditional lineage on the Amalfi Coast, it’s nice to imagine ourselves enjoying one there.

It’ll only take you five minutes to prepare this cocktail, but you will need to think 24 hours ahead to give it a solid day in the freezer. Friday drinks at yours? Tick the first step off on Thursday.

Bad espresso is the quickest way to ruin a good Espresso Martini Granita. Over-extract it and you’ll be left with a watery, bitter taste. Under-extract it and your granita will be sour and grassy. But nail it, and you’ll have yourself a granita worth writing home about.

Here’s where a good set of kitchen scales comes in handy. Pro baristas weigh their coffee grounds before extraction and the espresso itself as it’s pouring. A good rule of thumb for most commercial espresso beans is a 1:2 ratio. If you’re using 20g of coffee, aim for 40g of espresso. Every coffee’s different but that’ll get you in the ballpark.

Having said all that, if your mix isn’t freezing, you could add 30mL of water to help it set – just note this will mellow the flavour and texture slightly. Alternatively, your freezer may not be cold enough, so you could also try turning down the temp first. 

Alternatively, you could just grab a few shots from your local cafe. Not a bad strategy for any coffee-based cocktail, really. That includes the Iced Irish Coffee, the classic Espresso Martini... you name it.