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Irish coffee (Irish coffee) is one of the most delicious cocktails that both alcohol connoisseurs and coffee lovers like at the same time. The problem is that the traditional taste of the drink can be achieved only if the ingredients are selected correctly and the recipe is followed exactly.
Colleagues of the CoffeeFan website helped us to choose coffee and cream for Irish coffee, for which special thanks to them. We taught them to whip cream in a shaker and use a bar spoon.
Historical information
Until the early 50s, an air flight from Europe to America lasted 18 hours in an unpressurized and unheated seaplane cabin – the planes of those years were unreliable, often breaking down in the air, so an emergency landing on water was required.
For a flight across the Atlantic, passengers from Europe arrived at the Irish transit airport Shannon, then they were transported to the port city of Foynes, which had a seaplane terminal.
Internationally renowned politicians, businessmen, cultural figures and journalists frequented Shannon Airport. In order for the respectable public to be satisfied with the service, the administration hired a famous chef from Dublin, Joseph Sheridan, to work in the airport restaurant.
One evening in 1943, due to bad weather, a plane heading to the United States returned back. Passengers spent several hours in the air and were very cold, they needed to be warmed up urgently. Joseph Sheridan offered customers hot coffee with whiskey and cream according to a recipe he recently invented. One of the passengers liked the treat so much that he asked: “Is this Brazilian coffee?” Sheridan replied: “No, Irish.”
Irish coffee has since become the signature drink of the airport. In 1951, Stanton Delaplane, a journalist for the San Francisco Chronicle, tried Irish coffee. After returning to the United States, Delaplane spoke about the amazing coffee to his friend Jack Keppler, who owned the Buena Vista bar.
After much experimentation with mixing ingredients, Kepler found the perfect proportions and preparation method. In a couple of months, Irish coffee turned Buena Vista into the most visited bar in San Francisco, and since 1952, the author of the recipe, Joseph Sheridan, who moved to live in the USA, began to prepare a cocktail in the institution. The bar is still open today, the record being 6000 Irish coffees a day.
The Right Ingredients
Coffee
To make Irish coffee, medium roast Arabica beans (Viennese or slightly lighter) are required, preferably with chocolate notes, for example, the Indian variety Plantation A. Blends with robusta in the composition are too bitter.
The method of brewing coffee is not of fundamental importance, a double espresso brewed in a cezve (Turkish), French press or pour over is suitable, as long as it is not soluble. The French press is the best option. The degree of grinding depends on the preparation method.
Whiskey
You can use any brand of Irish whiskey without peaty and smoky notes: Jameson, Bushmills, Connemara, Finnegan, St. Patrick and others. Exposure is not of fundamental importance, because in a mixture with coffee and cream, these subtle shades are lost.
It is advisable to add warm whiskey (preheat in a water bath) or room temperature, then the ingredients mix better and the cocktail stays hot longer.
Cream
The most problematic ingredient that causes controversy. You need fresh cream with 20-30% fat content, you can take 10%, but the taste of the cocktail will not be so rich. Unwhipped cream sinks to the bottom and, under the influence of whiskey, coagulates into lumps. But cream from a can is also far from the best option.
Sometimes photographs of Irish coffee are depicted with a tall hat of cream. This does not correspond to the classic version, since it is customary to drink a cocktail immediately after preparation without stirring with a spoon or straw. If the creamy foam is too high, it is very difficult to drink Irish coffee without getting dirty. This is why experienced bartenders eschew canned cream in favor of regular liquid ones.
Cream for Irish coffee is whipped cold (+3-5 °C) until a homogeneous plastic foam appears, then it is poured into a glass in a thin stream, and not laid with a spoon. At home, for whipping to the desired consistency, instead of a blender, it is better to take an ordinary kitchen whisk.
Bartenders whip cream in a shaker filled with ice. The disadvantage of this method is that the cream is slightly diluted with water, so the higher the fat content, the better. With 10%, we do not recommend even trying.
Sugar
Cane sugar dissolves faster in whiskey and is the preferred option. Beetroot and even refined sugar are suitable for replacement, but during the cooking process, you need to make sure that the sugar is completely dissolved.
Wineglass
Irish coffee is served in a special glass goblet with a handle created specifically for this cocktail.
Classic Irish coffee recipe
Composition and proportions:
- hot black coffee – 80 ml;
- Irish whiskey – 40 ml;
- whipped cream – 30 ml;
- cane sugar – 1 teaspoon (optional)
Technology of preparation
1. Warm up the glass with the steam of a coffee machine or just pour some hot water.
2. Whip the cream until a homogeneous stable foam appears.
3. Brew natural black coffee in any way, if necessary, filter through a coffee filter to remove suspended matter.
4. Pour water out of the glass, add hot coffee and sugar. Make sure the sugar is completely dissolved.
5. Pour whiskey into coffee. Mix.
6. With the help of a bar spoon, on the blade of a knife or on an inverted spoon, add the cream in a thin stream so that it is light on the surface in an even layer.
7. In the traditional version, the finished cocktail is not decorated with anything, served hot and drunk in small sips.
