The Must-Buy Bottled Espresso Martini To Hunt Down At Your Liquor Store

Espresso martinis are in their golden era right now, dominating social media feeds and bar menus like few drinks ever have. With popularity comes competition, and ready-to-drink cocktails have officially entered the arena in the battle for the perfect espresso martini. Sadly, the convenience of a ready-to-drink cocktail sometimes means missing the mark on flavor, but that's not the case for XXI bottled espresso martinis. Tasting Table placed XXI's espresso martini firmly at the top of our rankings of nine brands.

Some prefer a stronger martini while others like theirs to lean into dessert territory, but either way, there's a lot to love about any combination of espresso, vodka, and simple syrup. We found that XXI's espresso martini excelled in satisfying flavor and mouthfeel. Thick and creamy, rich and chocolatey, XXI's martini is definitely more dessert than a cocktail that'll put hair on your chest. The chocolate and alcohol are the first flavors to hit your palate, followed by subtle notes of espresso and sweetness. This bottled martini was exceptionally easy to drink, putting it down was the hard part. So, for anyone looking for an espresso martini with a thick froth and yummy chocolate notes, the XXI brand is what you should grab.

Homemade anything is more often than not going to outshine a premade, store-bought product. The same isn't necessarily true for an espresso martini, though. While you can make a great espresso martini at home, there's a lot of moving parts and effort that goes into it. Sometimes you just want to open a bottle and have all the mixing done for you already, which is where ready-to-drink cocktails come in. Sure, not every bottled espresso martini is going to hit the spot, like the Ocean Organic Espresso Martini that fell at the bottom of our rankings. But, the fact that almost every other bottled martini on the list was not only drinkable but enjoyable in some aspect is promising.

The XXI brand espresso martini is a sure sign that bottled martinis have potential to hold up to a handmade cocktail fresh from the shaker. The company was actually born when one of the future founders was served an inspiringly perfect espresso martini by the other future founder. Beyond the picturesque espresso martini, the company also produces martinis in raspberry, peach, chocolate, and chocolate peppermint flavors. If any are half as good as their espresso sister, we can vouch for them, too.