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Irish Coffee Cocktail

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The Irish Coffee cocktail is a simple drink built with Irish whiskey, brown sugar, cream, and coffee!

Irish Coffee Cocktail Info

Although Irish Coffee is not the first coffee drink to contain alcohol, it has been a very popular cocktail. The Irish Coffee combines Irish whiskey, brown sugar, and lightly whipped cream. It's a warm, creamy classic that can be used to wake up after a long day or just for a quick boost. This drink is also golden on ski trips.

Many tall tales exist about the origins of Irish Coffee. One version that is the most reliable attributes the creation of the Irish Coffee cocktail to Joe Sheridan. He was the head chef at Foynes Flying Boat terminal, County Limerick, in the early 1940s and wanted to give a touch of local hospitality to the coffee shop's Coffee.

Stanton Delaplane (a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle) made the drink famous. He was a frequent visitor to the Buena Vista Café in San Francisco in the 1950s. Jack Koeppler, the bar owner, tried to replicate the warming elixir after he had tasted one in Ireland. Delaplane published a column about the drink, which was widely read in the United States, hence making it very popular. The drink gained a loyal following at Buena Vista and everywhere else.

What Dale DeGroff Thinks...

Dale DeGroff is a bartending legend who says that Irish Coffee shouldn't be served in large quantities. He believes that bars in America, especially, tend to make the drink too large, which can ruin the balance of the great cocktail. He advises people to begin with a six-ounce glass and then experiment from there.

DeGroff says that the Buena Vista Cafe finishes your concoction with a white cloud made of hand-whipped cream. This topping has two primary purposes. It gives the drink its signature black-and-white look and tempers the alcohol. You can decorate the beautiful white head with fresh cinnamon or nutmeg.

The amount of Irish whiskey in this cocktail can also be changed to your preference. This is a cocktail you should play around with until you find what you like.

Irish Coffee

Irish Coffee! A warm, creamy classic.

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4.75 from 4 votes
Course: Cocktail, Drink
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Mix Time: 1 minute
Servings: 1 Serving(s)

Ingredients

  • 45 ml Irish Whiskey
  • 3 tsp Brown Sugar
  • 100 ml Coffee ((Hot))
  • 50 ml Cream

Instructions

  • Take a rock's glass.
  • Add whiskey and brown sugar, then lightly mix so the sugar dissolves.
  • Add your hot coffee. Then mix again.
  • Now layer the (whipped) cream on top.
  • Serve!
Nutrition
Calories: 332kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 69mg | Sodium: 24mg | Potassium: 103mg | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 735IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 1mg
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