When I think of an Irish cocktail, the first one that comes to my mind is an Irish Coffee. Usually I am thinking about Irish Coffee around St. Patrick’s Day, but they’re great anytime during the year to warm you up.
The keys to a good Irish Coffee are the quality of Irish whiskey (such as Tullamore Dew that I now use) and making sure that the coffee is freshly brewed, hot and made with a medium roast coffee rather a dark roast. You don’t want the coffee flavor to be so intense that it covers up the whiskey. For the whipping cream, it should be just thick enough to pour and float on top of the cocktail. I found an easy way to make whipped cream that I learned from Justin Chapple of Food & Wine Magazine.
I learned a lot about making an Irish coffee when I visited the Buena Vista Café in San Francisco, which claims to be the first place that served the Irish coffee in the United States. At this bar they use Tullamore Dew whiskey in their signature drink. I wondered if using this brand of whiskey really makes that big of a difference, so I did tasting of several different Irish whiskeys. (WOW, what I have to go through for my research!) I did find that this whiskey has a more refined mellow taste than common brands like Jameson or Bushmills usually found in most bars. I will be using Tullamore Dew in my Irish coffees from now on.
Irish Coffee
Print recipeIngredients
- 1 1/2 Ounces Irish Whiskey (Tullamore Irish Whiskey is recommended)
- 2 Cubes Sugar
- 6 Ounces Coffee
- Whipping Cream (slightly whipped)
Directions
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Making the whipped cream. Place glass jar in freezer for about an hour. Remove glass jar from freezer and add 1 cup heavy cream, screw top on and shake for 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Heavy cream should be slightly whipped, just enough so you can still pour it. You can use whipped cream right away. Store remaining whipped cream in refrigerator to use later for next round of drinks. |  |
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Fill footed coffee cup with hot water to warm cup. (glass footed coffee cup is recommended) |  |
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Add two sugar cubes, fill the cup 3/4 with hot fresh coffee and stir with spoon until sugar is dissolved. |  |
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Add 1 1/2 ounces of Irish whiskey to cup and pour slightly whipped cream over a spoon to float the cream on top of the cocktail. |  |
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Serve right away. |  |
