The entrepreneur chats exclusively with OK! about the caffeine-filled cocktail’s popularity, how his pal Naomi Campbell somewhat inspired the venture, making his product unique and hosting the upcoming special edition of Fashionably Late at the Liberty Hotel in Boston, Mass.
“It turns out when we started on this adventure, the Espresso Martini wasn’t even in the top ten cocktails,” Barker reveals. “When we launched the business in September of last year, it was the number five most ordered cocktail in the U.S. It was just announced that it pushed the Old Fashioned from its number two spot and is now the second most ordered cocktail after the margarita. You only have to go to any bar or restaurant to see these delectable cocktails being served hard and fast!”
As for why the sipper is so prominent in the zeitgeist, he adds: “Coffee culture is big everywhere and has been around for millennia. We trust coffee, we need coffee, we love coffee. There are also few cocktails that can be served at so many times during the day. It is a perfect addition to the brunch lineup next to the Mimosa and Bloody Mary, which have owned that space forever. It is a nicer sounding, more sophisticated option to the Vodka Redbull, which is often the first drink of the night. It’s also a fabulous drink to wrap up with after dinner… would you like a dessert, a coffee, or another cocktail? Why choose when you can have all three at once in an Espresso Martini!”