Sunset Cocktail: National Irish Coffee Day
1 1/2 oz Jameson Black Barrel Whiskey
2 tsp Raw Sugar
6 oz Hot Coffee
Heavy Cream*
Add Whiskey and sugar to a prewarmed coffee mug. Add the coffee and stir until sugar is disolved. Use the spoon to float cream on top. Remove the spoon (don’t stir) and sip the coffee through the cream.
Today is National Irish Coffee Day. January 25th is also Burns Night so my first inclination was to make a Scotch Coffee as a variation to cover both as there’s no real appeal to trying haggis. Unfortunately it seems the origin of “Scotch Coffee” is a derogatory reference to the Scottish stereotype of excessive frugality made with of hot water, milk, sugar and a handful of burnt breadcrumbs. I decided to stay with the standard.
Having been brought up as a good Irish Catholic**, drinking Jameson has pretty much been a family tradition. Up until now I’ve only every had the standard triple distilled so I figured I’d get a bottle of the Black Barrel. This may now be my favorite Irish Whiskey. That being said, I haven’t really broadened my taste for Irish Whiskey much outside of Jameson but now I feel like I have to pick up a few more brands to give them a try. Any suggestions?
* Non dairy creamers work but may not float as well. For the love of Nodens, DON’T USE A FLAVORED CREAMER! Irish or Whipped Cream have been known to work well if you want added sweetness.
** That is until my father got into an argument with Father McKenzie of St. Bernard’s and we switched to St, Ann’s Roman Catholic church as Father Gambino was a much more pleasant gentleman. They went back to St. Bernard’s many years later after Father McKenzie died in Las Vegas.
You have no idea how much joy it brings me to be able to link the two major religious figures from my childhood to a Beatles’ song and a Cosa Nostra crime family.
