# Rüdesheimer Kaffee Source: https://dailyextraction.com/drinks/rudesheimer-kaffee/ Last updated: 2026-10-21 > Rüdesheimer Kaffee is a coffee from Rüdesheim am Rhein, Germany: Asbach Uralt brandy is flambéed with sugar cubes in a special cup, then topped with hot coffee, whipped cream sweetened with vanilla sugar, and chocolate flakes. It was invented in 1957 by television chef Hans Karl Adam. ## At a glance - Chapter: Coffee cocktails - Served: Hot - Origin: Germany, Rüdesheim am Rhein, 1957 - Glass: Rüdesheimer coffee cup, or any heatproof cup - Also known as: Rüdesheim coffee, Rüdesheimer coffee, Ruedesheimer Kaffee ## Ingredients - 4 cl (40 ml) Asbach Uralt brandy (or cognac or armagnac) - 3 sugar cubes - 125 ml hot, strong black coffee - a thick layer whipped cream, sweetened with vanilla sugar - to garnish dark chocolate flakes ## Steps 1. **Sugar in the cup**: Put three sugar cubes in a heatproof cup. 2. **Warm the brandy**: Warm the brandy a little, then pour it over the sugar. 3. **Flambé**: Carefully light the brandy with a long match and stir for about a minute, breaking up the sugar, until it dissolves. 4. **Add the coffee**: Pour in hot, strong coffee to about half an inch below the rim. 5. **Top and serve**: Top with thick, vanilla-sweetened whipped cream and scatter over chocolate flakes. **Rüdesheimer Kaffee** is a coffee with a show attached. In a special cup, **Asbach Uralt** brandy is poured over sugar cubes and **set alight**, stirred until the sugar melts, then topped with hot coffee, a thick cap of **whipped cream sweetened with vanilla sugar**, and **chocolate flakes**. It comes from **Rüdesheim am Rhein**, the wine town on the Rhine where Asbach brandy is made, and it was invented in **1957** by television chef **Hans Karl Adam**. Here's how to make it at home, safely. ## The short version - **Asbach brandy flambéed with sugar**, then coffee, cream and chocolate. - **From Rüdesheim am Rhein**, home of Asbach brandy. - **Invented in 1957** by TV chef Hans Karl Adam. - **Served in a special cup**, with a long match. - **Cognac or armagnac** work if you can't find Asbach, Wikipedia says. ## What's in Rüdesheimer Kaffee? Wikipedia gives the recipe: | Ingredient | Amount | | --- | --- | | Hot, black coffee | 125 ml | | Sugar cubes | 3 | | Asbach Uralt brandy, or cognac or armagnac | 4 cl (40 ml) | | Whipped cream, sweetened with vanilla sugar | A thick topping | | Dark chocolate flakes | To garnish | German Girl in America's version uses the same three sugar cubes and about 40 ml (1⅓ oz) of Asbach. ## How do you make it? 1. **Put three sugar cubes** in a heatproof cup. 2. **Warm the brandy** a little, German Girl in America suggests, in the microwave or in a glass stood in hot water, then pour it over the sugar. 3. **Light it** with a long match and stir, breaking up the sugar, for about a minute until it dissolves, as Wikipedia describes. 4. **Pour in hot, strong coffee**, to about half an inch from the rim. 5. **Top with thick, vanilla-sweetened whipped cream** and scatter over chocolate flakes. *Take great care with flaming alcohol: use a heatproof cup, a long match, keep it away from anything flammable, and never pour more brandy onto a flame. Contains alcohol: for adults only.* ## Where does it come from? **Rüdesheim am Rhein.** The town is the home of **Asbach**, which German Girl in America calls arguably Germany's best-known brandy. **Hugo Asbach** learned distilling in France and founded his distillery in Rüdesheim in **1892**; it made sense, she explains, because brandy is distilled from wine, and the Rhine was full of it. After the First World War, when "cognac" became reserved for French brandy, Asbach renamed his product **Weinbrand**, which became the official German term in **1923**. In **1957**, television chef **Hans Karl Adam** created Rüdesheimer Kaffee, Wikipedia says, and it became a popular coffee-house drink. German Girl in America puts it in context: coffee, spirits and whipped cream had already been combined in drinks like the [Pharisäer](https://dailyextraction.com/drinks/pharisaer/), and [Irish coffee](https://dailyextraction.com/drinks/irish-coffee/) was fashionable in the 1950s; Adam's twist was local brandy, and setting it on fire, in a table-side ceremony with a special cup. ## Rüdesheimer Kaffee vs other coffee cocktails - **[Pharisäer](https://dailyextraction.com/drinks/pharisaer/):** North Frisia's coffee with rum under whipped cream. - **[Irish coffee](https://dailyextraction.com/drinks/irish-coffee/):** coffee, Irish whiskey and sugar under floating cream. - **[Einspänner](https://dailyextraction.com/drinks/einspanner/):** Vienna's black coffee under whipped cream, no alcohol. - **[Carajillo](https://dailyextraction.com/drinks/carajillo/):** espresso with brandy, rum or Licor 43. Explore every drink in the [coffee cocktails chapter](https://dailyextraction.com/drinks/coffee-cocktails/). ## FAQs ### Who invented Rüdesheimer Kaffee? German television chef Hans Karl Adam, in 1957, according to Wikipedia and German Girl in America. It comes from Rüdesheim am Rhein, home of the Asbach brandy distillery. ### What brandy is used? Asbach Uralt, made in Rüdesheim. Wikipedia says cognac or armagnac can be used instead. German Girl in America explains that Hugo Asbach founded his distillery there in 1892, because brandy is distilled from wine and the Rhine was wine country. ### Why is the brandy set alight? To dissolve the sugar. Wikipedia says the brandy is flambéed and stirred for about a minute until the sugar cubes dissolve, before the coffee goes in. ### Do you need a special cup? No, but it's part of the ritual in Rüdesheim, where it's served in a cup designed for the drink, with special spoons and a long match. German Girl in America says a regular cup works, "only slightly less spectacular". ### Can you make it iced? German Girl in America suggests an iced version: pour Asbach over vanilla ice cream, add cold coffee, and top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. ## Sources - [Rüdesheimer Kaffee](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%BCdesheimer_Kaffee) - [Rüdesheim coffee recipe: make Rüdesheimer Kaffee at home](https://germangirlinamerica.com/rudesheim-coffee-recipe)