Irish Coffee Brew Guide
The origins of Irish coffee are perhaps surprisingly recent. One stormy night in 1942, Foynes Hotel, on the wild west coast of Ireland was preparing to host a party of travellers whose plane had turned back en route to New York due to the extreme weather. Head Chef Joe Sheridan, upon hearing of the plane’s imminent return, prepared coffees mixed with brown sugar, whiskey and cream, to warm the returning passengers.
After tasting the delightful mixture, one of the passengers piped up and asked “Are these Brazilian coffees?” to which Joe replied “No, they’re Irish coffees!” and thus the legend was born.
Joe continued to serve up his special drinks, but it wasn’t until 1952 when travel writer Stanton Delaplane took the recipe back to the Buena Vista in San Francisco that things really took off.
Since then the drink has become famous worldwide; the Buena Vista serves up to 2,000 Irish coffees daily!
(Thanks to Emerald Heritage for providing this story!)
Here’s our recipe for classic Irish Coffee:
You’ll need
- 175 ml black coffee made in a cafetière or stovetop pot. Ideally use a Causeway Coffee medium-dark blended roast.
- 2 tablespoons double cream
- 50ml whiskey, ideally Bushmills
- ½ - 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- Freshly grated nutmeg
- A glass cup
Let’s go!
- Make your coffee and pour it into the glass.
- Add the whiskey and sugar then stir.
- Whip the cream until it begins to thicken then gently add to the coffee (we drizzle it over an upturned spoon).
- Sprinkle a small amount of nutmeg on top.
Enjoy the sublime taste of a freshly-brewed Irish coffee!
