Booze Up Your Brunch With A Splash Of This Sweet, Bourbon-Based Cream Liqueur

Whether it's a holiday, birthday, or just the weekend, adding a little booze to your brunch is a fun way to unwind every so often. While bloody Marys and mimosas are classic go-to brunch cocktails, sometimes, all you need is a splash of something sweet and boozy in your coffee. You've probably encountered Irish cream, but have you tried the newer innovation, bourbon cream? 

Bourbon cream is a blend of bourbon, a type of American whiskey, and cream, the fatty top layer of unpasteurized milk. The result is a rich, thick liqueur with the consistency of melted ice cream and notes of vanilla and caramel. The alcohol content is around 15% ABV. It's difficult to know the exact origins of bourbon cream, however. Its beginnings are typically traced back to 2015 with the release of the creamy bourbon liqueur by the iconic Buffalo Trace Distillery, and smaller batch distillers Black Button Distilling in New York and Headframe Spirits in Montana. 

Incorporating bourbon cream into your coffee can be as simple as pouring a hot cuppa and adding the liqueur as you would coffee creamer. For a cold coffee cocktail, combine bourbon cream, cold espresso or coffee, and a dash of bitters in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and pour into a glass. Garnish with nutmeg and/or cinnamon. Alternatively, kick it up a notch by crafting a decadent, dessert cocktail with iced coffee, bourbon cream, and vanilla ice cream. Top it with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. 

While both cream liqueurs, bourbon cream and Irish cream contain different ingredients and flavor profiles. Irish cream also has a longer history, with the first commercially made Irish cream liqueur, Baileys, debuting in 1974. Baileys has become synonymous with Irish cream and holds the title as the highest selling liqueur in the world. 

Generally, the biggest difference between bourbon cream and Irish cream is the type of whiskey they're made with. Irish cream (like Baileys) is made with Irish whiskey, which is commonly made using unmalted and malted barley, and it's triple distilled to give it a light, fruity taste with an ultra-smooth finish. Meanwhile, the bourbon in bourbon cream is made in the U.S. — traditionally in Kentucky — and must be made with at least 51% corn and aged in charred oak barrels, giving it a sweeter, smokier flavor than Irish whiskey. 

Bourbon is typically described as richer and denser than Irish whiskey with notes of vanilla, caramel, and oak, while Irish whiskey is mellow and silky, with fruity notes and warm spiciness. Many people say the flavor profile of bourbon makes bourbon cream a sweeter, more luxurious liqueur than Irish cream, although both types taste great in coffee. Do yourself a favor and try a two-ingredient bourbon root beer float that tastes like heaven. Like Irish cream, bourbon cream is easy to make yourself by combining heavy cream, bourbon, and flavor enhancers like vanilla, agave syrup, espresso powder, and cocoa powder.