Boozy Coffee Kahlua Coke Float

Your favorite soda shop treat gets a glow-up in this boozy Coffee Kahlua Coke Float. Coffee ice cream provides the creamy fizz on top of a smooth mixture of cola, coffee and coffee liqueur.

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Do you remember the first time you had a Coke float?

I do — it was mesmerizing to watch the soda fizz up against the cold ice cream.

Always a special treat for me, I loved drinking them as a kid.

What is a Coke float?

Also known as a Black Cow, a Coke float is a dessert beverage consisting of vanilla ice cream topped with cola.

The cold temperature of the ice cream causes the cola to fizz and bubble up, creating a beverage with a creamy yet carbonated texture.

These drinks, including root beer floats, were staples at old soda shops and diners, and you might still see them on a few menus today.

Now that I’m an adult, I’ve discovered two ways to elevate the regular ol’ Coke float: by changing up the ice cream flavor and by adding booze.

What kind of ice cream should be used in a Coke float?

The best kind of ice cream for a Coke float is always homemade, if you have the time.

Making ice cream in the summer is such a lovely indulgence. You can make just about any flavor imaginable.

But if you don’t have the time, no worries — spring for a fancier brand of ice cream at the store to really elevate your floats.

How to make a boozy coke float

Adding booze is a fun way to turn a Coke float into an adult treat. (Responsibly, of course.)

You can pour any two-ingredient cocktail that’s made with cola over a scoop of ice cream and you’ve got yourself a glorious little adult treat.

Could be a rum and Coke, a whiskey and Coke, a vodka and Coke — pick your poison!

Or you could go with coffee liqueur like I did here.

How to make a boozy Coffee Kahlua Coke Float

Now in this version, a Kahlua Coke Float, I combined both methods for next-level Coke floats, and I added something extra.

In this recipe, you’ll be using coffee ice cream and coffee liqueur, plus a little coffee for an extra kick.

I like to make my own homemade coffee liqueur but you can totally use a storebought brand like Kahlua or Tia Maria. No rules here.

You’ll place your coffee ice cream in a milkshake glass, if you have one, and top it with the coffee liqueur and coffee. (Make sure the coffee is cold or room temperature so as not to melt the ice cream right away.)

Then, slowly, pour the Coca-Cola on top, and watch as it bubbles and fizzes.

Pop in a brightly colored straw and it’ll feel just like you’re on the set of Grease. (Hopefully, anyway.)

The homemade coffee ice cream, silky smooth Kahlua and coffee come together beautifully in this soda shop upgrade.

You could also skip the Coke and toss everything in a blender for a boozy coffee milkshake. 

However you make your boozy coke float, enjoy every sip! They are so much fun if you want to feel like a kid again, but with a little grown-up kick!

More cola cocktails

• Rum & Coke
• Cuba Libre
• Whiskey & Coke
• Jack & Coke
• Tootsie Roll drink