Café Montezuma

Sometimes it’s fun to play with fire, and this variation on the venerable Café Royale, an after-dinner classic, lets you do just that.

1 ounce plus 1 teaspoon anejo tequila
4 to 6 ounces very hot coffee
1 sugar cube

Fill a small cup with the coffee and float 1 ounce of the tequila on top of it. Place the sugar cube in a long-handled teaspoon, fill the spoon with more tequila, and warm it for half a minute or so by holding it close to the surface of the coffee. Then have somebody hand you a lighted match (unless you can strike matches one-handed) and light the tequila in the spoon. Let this burn until the sugar bubbles (15 to 20 seconds) and then gently touch it to the surface of the tequila-covered coffee, which should light. When it burns itself out, drop the sugar in and stir.

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