Irish whiskey cocktail is obligatory for March because the whole month is basically St. Patrick’s Day, right? What else is there in March? Well … Julius Caesar’s death, but what would we drink to honor that? Wine? Ouzo?
Exactly — so whiskey it is.
You immediately reach for your bottle of Bailey’s. Et tu Brute? Hold on, y’all. What if I told you the best Irish coffee has exactly zero Bailey’s Irish Cream in it? Sure, you can definitely end up with a tasty beverage with the quintessential Irish cream, but hear me out. This recipe will make you forget everything you thought you knew about the Irish coffee. The trick is in the cream. Cold, lightly whipped heavy cream, that is. Pour yourself a few ounces in a protein shaker, mason jar, shaker tin, or whatever you have. Shake until the volume has about doubled from the aeration, but don’t over whip. We aren’t looking for soft peaks here, folks. It’s gotta still be pourable. Once whipped, keep it in the refrigerator until ready to use. This stuff is magical when used cold.
The recipe below is pretty forgiving. Feel free to tweak the amount of booze or sugar you add depending on how strong or sweet you want it. Just please use some decent, if not good, coffee. There are just too many amazing coffee shops in the CSRA, so don’t use some mass-produced vaguely coffee-flavored dirt that you buy in a colored plastic container. And make it strong!
Irish Coffee
- 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 oz blended Irish whiskey
- 2 – 3 tsp granulated sugar
- 4 oz strong hot coffee
- lightly whipped heavy cream
Add your sugar, whiskey, and coffee into a warm, small (6 oz) glass and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Float your lightly whipped heavy cream by pouring it gently over the back of a spoon onto the top of the drink. Garnish with a bit of freshly grated nutmeg.
The glass pictured here is called a Georgian Irish Coffee Glass. Don’t be discouraged if you are using something else — just make sure it is stemmed or handled to avoid burning your fingers when you go for a sip. With that said, I found a set of these, and dozens of other gems, at my favorite place to shop for glassware — Goodwill. Whether it’s cocktail-specific glassware like this, Lenox crystal, vintage tiki mugs, or basic glassware, Goodwill is an excellent resource. You just have to be willing to hunt around a bit and keep at it. You might even find your own Irish coffee glasses.
Go ahead and whip up one of these bad boys in whatever glass you have, and leave the green beer alone. Or if you must partake in the green beer, you can do a lot worse than pairing a delicious Irish coffee with your brunch/cold pizza the next day.
