How to make a good Irish coffee?
With just four ingredients, we can prepare one of the most exquisite drinks of all time: El irish coffee or Irish coffee. If we use just the right portions of whiskey, brown sugar, coffee and heavy cream, we will have the privilege of tasting this long-standing drink, with almost a century of history. In fact, it continues to lead the menu of bars and cafes.
However, enjoying a delicious Irish coffee will not only depend on following its recipe to the letter. It turns out that something as simple as the way you take it will also define its quality. A blunder that many often make is mixing the cream with the drink. Specialists recommend avoiding this, and proceed to drink it through it.
Believe it or not, all cocktails and coffee recipes share a powerful enemy. In this case it is the mistreatment of its preparation, neglect of the quality of its ingredients and handling by poorly qualified personnel. As expected, Irish coffee is no exception. Although its preparation is not complicated at all, it is necessary to take care of every detail. Factors that make it a drink that continues to survive and make a difference.
You're probably wondering, is this coffee really Irish? And the answer is yes. This is not false marketing or advertising. So, since Incapto Coffee, we will take care of providing you with all the information about this great drink and of course, what makes it so special.
What is the origin of Irish coffee?
As we highlighted above, this drink has Irish nationality. His birth occurs in decade of the forties, specifically in 1942. The story begins when a group of American passengers landed at Foyne Air Base, located in the west of Ireland. The flight had some complications due to stormy storms. But fortunately, the tourists arrived safely at their destination that cold night.
The freezing weather had the passengers suffering. That is why the chef of the air terminal, Joe Sheridan, decided to help them, so he prepared a drink so that in addition to warming their bodies, they could raise their spirits a little.
The preparation consisted of mixing hot coffee with a touch of Irish whiskey and semi-whipped cream. As expected, the passengers were delighted with that delicious flavor, which aroused the curiosity of one of those present. This person asked Sheridan if that was Brazilian coffee. To which the chef quickly responded, assuring that it was irish coffee.
By 1945, Foyne Air Base was closed for the purpose of expanding the runway. Some time later, Shannon International Airport was inaugurated, where chef Joe Sheridan continued to offer his peculiar and exquisite drink. He worked there until 1952. A plaque currently stands at the Joe Sheridan Cafe Bar, honoring his great achievement.
That same year, San Francisco Chronicle travel columnist Stanton Delaplane managed to convince George Freeber, owner of the Buena Vista Bar, to recreate the popular drink. Unfortunately, after several attempts they were unable to replicate it, no combination resembled the drink that the writer had tried at the Sheridan location in Ireland.
Following the death of Stanto Delaplane, on the city's cable car tracks and tired of so many failed attempts. Freeber decided to offer chef Joe Sheridan a place in his establishment, convincing him to emigrate to the United States, the country where he spent the last years of his life. His grave in California has the following written: “Here lies Joe Sheridan, the inventor of the most famous drink in the world: El irish coffee”.
How to prepare the original Irish coffee?
You already know the true history of this popular drink. Incapto Coffee, will get into your kitchen and help you make real Irish coffee. Just like Joe Sheridan used to prepare it and managed to conquer the entire world with his great secret.
It is a simple recipe, which allows for some much more elaborate and even fanciful variants and versions. In some bars and cafes, they serve it in balloon-type glasses or beer glasses, just as they do at Café Buenavista. They also usually use the famous jug with a foot and handle. The latter must be made of crystal or transparent glass and with a wide mouth.
That being said, we start with the ingredients:
-200 ml of hot coffee
-4 tablespoons of Irish whiskey
-2 tablespoons of brown sugar
-1 teaspoon of whipped cream
Tip
This drink is perfect for those freezing winter nights. Ideal to enjoy alone or in the company of your loved ones and friends. Now, we recommend that the distillate be Irish (something very obvious) but it is also essential to use quality coffee and cream, which should never be industrial.
Regarding brewing coffee, avoid making espresso as this will not work. You should try to avoid too strong cream and body, or even a very pronounced aroma. Believe it or not, this could dull the flavor of the whiskey.
Add a little nutmeg or ground cinnamon, they are 100% approved for decoration only. But our experts invite us to avoid mint syrups and the like, which seek to be references for the Irish cocktail.
Preparation
Just as we have highlighted from the beginning. Its preparation is very simple, to tell the truth. We can make Irish coffee in two or three layers, where the first is the most subtle. To achieve this, we proceed to prepare filter or American type coffee.
Later, we will add the whiskey and sugar, we must stir very well until it dissolves. Finally we put this mixture in the glass and that's it!
Now it's the cream's turn. The texture of it should be like whipped cream. That is to say, very melty, free of visible air bubbles and without peaks. The secret is to be able to add the cream little by little, with the help of the back of a spoon. With this we will achieve this coverage similar to beer foam.
In case it gets complicated for you. We offer you another option. The first thing to do is dissolve the sugar with a little hot water. Resulting in a syrup. Or just heat it directly with whiskey or coffee. Nowadays it is very common to whip Irish coffee in three layers: A base of alcohol with sugar, then add the coffee and finally the cream.
How to serve it?
Once we finished our drink. We should serve it freshly made. Why? It turns out that this will be the only way to identify all the nuances that make Irish coffee one of the best.
That is, we would be able to enjoy that delicate contrast in flavor, temperature and texture. On the other hand, we will witness how the cold cream begins to slowly sink into the hot drink. Flaming the glass is not a step that is part of the original drink. But we cannot deny that this is striking enough for the clientele.
Source:
Irish Coffee: The Story Behind the Legendary Whiskey and Coffee Cocktail
