Some nights call for something darker. Richer. A little more daring. The kind of evening where you're curled up with a book that makes you think about who you've been, where you're going, and what kind of mark you want to leave on the world. That's the vibe we're chasing tonight with the "Midnight in Paris" Espresso Martini, a cocktail built on bold French Roast coffee, smooth vodka, and a whole lot of soul.
And because no great drink stands alone, we're pairing it with two books that couldn't be more different on the surface but share a deep, quietly powerful thread: legacy. George Takei's memoir To The Stars and anything by Ernest Hemingway remind us that reaching for something bigger than ourselves, whether it's the final frontier or the perfect sentence, takes guts, grace, and a willingness to keep going even when the world isn't ready for you yet.
Let's pour one out (literally) and talk about what it means to live boldly, dream bigger, and leave something behind worth remembering.
The Cocktail: "Midnight in Paris" Espresso Martini
Here's the thing about a well-made espresso martini: it's not just a pick-me-up or a dessert drink. It's a moment. A ritual. The kind of cocktail that asks you to slow down, pay attention, and savor every sip, because the right coffee, paired with the right spirit, creates something that's greater than the sum of its parts.
The French Roast we're using here isn't messing around. It's dark, smoky, bold, the kind of roast that stands up to vodka without flinching. You need that intensity in a cocktail like this, or the coffee gets lost in the shuffle. French Roast brings presence, depth, and just enough bitterness to balance the sweetness from the coffee liqueur and simple syrup.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz Vodka
- 1 oz Freshly brewed & chilled French Roast coffee
- 0.5 oz Coffee Liqueur
- 0.25 oz Simple Syrup
Method:
Shake everything vigorously with ice until it's frothy and ice-cold. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. Garnish with three French Roast coffee beans, for health, wealth, and happiness (because if you're going to drink something this good, you might as well invoke a little luck while you're at it).
The result? Silky, smooth, with that trademark espresso martini foam on top. The vodka gives it backbone, the coffee liqueur adds warmth and sweetness, and the French Roast ties it all together with a smoky finish that lingers just long enough to make you want another sip.
The Books: Legacy, Courage, and Reaching for the Stars
Now let's talk about what you're reading while you're sipping.
To The Stars by George Takei
If you know George Takei at all, it's probably as Hikaru Sulu from Star Trek, the calm, capable helmsman who steered the USS Enterprise through some of the most iconic moments in sci-fi television history. But Takei's real-life journey is just as compelling, and honestly, way more inspiring.
To The Stars is his memoir, and it's a masterclass in resilience. Takei writes about growing up as a Japanese American kid who spent part of his childhood in an internment camp during World War II. He talks about fighting for roles in Hollywood at a time when Asian American actors were barely considered for anything beyond stereotypes. And he reflects on what it meant to be part of Star Trek, a show that, for all its cheesy special effects and over-the-top dialogue, represented something revolutionary: a future where people of all backgrounds worked together as equals.
What makes this book so powerful is Takei's refusal to be bitter. He's honest about the injustices he faced, but he never lets those experiences define him. Instead, he leans into hope, activism, and the belief that we can build a better tomorrow if we're willing to do the work. That's legacy. Not the accolades or the fame, but the impact you leave on the people who come after you.
Ernest Hemingway: The Master of Economy and Impact
Then there's Hemingway. Pick any of his books, The Old Man and the Sea, A Moveable Feast, The Sun Also Rises, and you'll find the same thing: prose so clean, so stripped-down, that every word carries weight. Hemingway didn't waste a single sentence, and he didn't need to. He trusted his readers to fill in the gaps, to feel the emotion he wasn't spelling out.
That's a kind of legacy too. Hemingway's influence on American literature is massive, not because he wrote the longest books or the most flowery sentences, but because he showed writers what was possible when you cut away everything that didn't matter. His work endures because it's honest, raw, and timeless.
And if we're being real, Hemingway was also a complicated guy, deeply flawed, often difficult, struggling with his own demons. But that's part of what makes his work so human. He wasn't trying to be perfect. He was trying to be true. And that truth resonates decades later.
Why These Two Work Together
On the surface, George Takei and Ernest Hemingway don't have much in common. One's a memoir by a trailblazing actor and activist. The other's the collected works of a hard-drinking novelist who spent his life chasing bulls, wars, and the perfect sentence.
But here's the thread: both men understood what it meant to reach for something bigger than themselves, even when the odds were stacked against them.
Takei fought for representation, dignity, and a seat at the table in an industry that didn't want to give him one. Hemingway fought for clarity, truth, and a style of writing that broke all the rules of his time. And both of them left something behind that still matters today.
That's what legacy is. It's not about being perfect or universally loved. It's about showing up, doing the work, and trusting that the impact you make, whether it's through art, activism, or just the way you treat people, will ripple outward long after you're gone.
The Pairing: Bold Coffee, Bold Lives
So why does the "Midnight in Paris" Espresso Martini work so well with these books?
Because this cocktail doesn't apologize for what it is. The French Roast is unapologetically bold. The vodka is clean and strong. The foam on top is a little indulgent, a little glamorous, but underneath there's substance. Complexity. Something worth savoring.
That's Takei's memoir. That's Hemingway's prose. That's the kind of life we should all be reaching for, the kind where we're not afraid to take up space, to be ourselves, to leave something behind that matters.
And if you're going to chase that kind of legacy, you might as well do it with a damn good cocktail in hand.
How to Enjoy This Pairing
Here's how I'd suggest settling in with this one:
Set the Scene:
Dim the lights. Put on some jazz, maybe Miles Davis or Chet Baker. Something smooth, contemplative, a little melancholy. This isn't a party drink. It's a "reflect on your life choices" drink, in the best possible way.
Make the Cocktail:
Brew your French Roast and let it chill while you pull out your shaker. When you're ready, shake everything hard, get that foam frothy and perfect. Pour it into your favorite coupe glass and garnish with those three beans.
Pick Your Book:
Start with Takei if you're in the mood for something hopeful and grounding. Start with Hemingway if you want something sharper, more existential. Either way, you're in for a night of good reading, good drinking, and maybe a few big thoughts about what you want your own legacy to look like.
Sip Slowly:
This isn't a cocktail you rush. Let it sit on your tongue. Notice the bitterness of the coffee, the warmth of the liqueur, the smoothness of the vodka. Let the book sink in the same way, one page, one paragraph, one sentence at a time.
Final Thoughts: Reaching for the Stars
At the end of the day, this pairing is about one thing: courage.
Courage to dream bigger. Courage to tell your story, even when it's hard. Courage to strip away the noise and focus on what really matters. Courage to leave something behind that makes the world just a little bit better, a little bit kinder, a little bit more honest.
George Takei reached for the stars, literally and figuratively. Ernest Hemingway reached for truth in every sentence he wrote. And tonight, with a French Roast espresso martini in hand and a good book in your lap, you can reach for something too.
Maybe it's a creative project you've been putting off. Maybe it's a conversation you've been too scared to have. Maybe it's just giving yourself permission to slow down, savor the moment, and remember that your life, your story, matters.
Whatever it is, here's to bold coffee, bold lives, and the legacy we're all still writing.
Cheers. ???
Must be 21 and over. Please drink responsibly.
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