Cocktail Hour: Irish Whiskey Primer & Irish Coffee
Posted: Tue Mar 16, 2010 6:15 amIrish Coffee is a dead-simple recipe to make, so I'll expand this post a little with some of my notes on Irish whiskeys.
Irish Whisk[b]e[/b]y (odd fact: the UK, Canada, Australia and Japan spell it [i]whisky[/i], without the "e"): Unlike scotch, which has distinctive bold flavors (i.e., peat/smoke/iodine/brine), Irish whiskey is mostly barley and no peat, the end result being that it is far more mellow. There are a handful of Irish whiskeys on the market:<ul><li>[b]Jameson[/b] - The classic Irish whiskey (for Irish catholics), Jameson is actually owned by the French bev giant Pernod. They only use barley grown near the distillery in Cork. Jameson has a nice flavor that improves with the age (and price) of the bottle. For Irish coffee, however, entry level Jameson is fine ($30).</li><li>[b]Bushmill's[/b] - Distilled in Northern Ireland (and considered by some to be the "protestant" whiskey). My go-to brand for Irish whiskey, I prefer it slightly to Jameson's. Black Bush ($30) and the 10 Year ($40) both retain the whiskey edge while still being reliable sippers.</li><li>[b]Redbreast[/b] ($40) - One of my favorite whiskeys, it's produced at the Jameson distillery. Supposedly it's the only pure pot-stilled whiskey, but whatever-- it's a balanced, near-perfect expression of Irish whiskey.</li><li>[b]Knappogue Castle[/b] ($40) - Not very well known, KC has a golden straw color to it, and a lighter, grassier taste. It's slightly different while still being unmistakably whiskey, and I enjoy it a lot.</li><li>[b]Midleton's[/b] - At $110+ a bottle, it's the most extravagant of the Irish whiskeys, but it's also the richest, smoothest and most complex. It's my favorite brand of all whiskeys (and whiskys, for that matter). Unless you're Donald Trump, mixing Midleton's in an Irish coffee or any other drink would be total lunacy.</li><li>[b]The Knot[/b] ($30) - The Knot is technically not a whiskey, it's a liqueur. It's the Southern Comfort of Irish whiskeys. At 100 proof, it packs a punch. It's sweet (but not quite cloying) with a vanilla cinnamon kick to it, which has the added benefit of making it the most likely brand that a lady might actually try and enjoy.</li></ul>
[b]Irish Coffee Recipe[/b]
The ingredients are: Irish whiskey, coffee, sugar, cream. Hard to screw up, but then St. Patrick's Day [i]is[/i] amateur hour. <ol><li>Prepare your coffee. Don't flake out, this is an Irish drink-- make it strong. You'll want 4 ounces of strong black coffee. Use a mug or wine glass with plenty of room, so you can add whiskey or cream to suit your taste.</li><li>Add a shot of Irish whiskey. You can't go wrong with any of the whiskeys listed above (with the exception of Midleton).</li><li>Add sugar. Actually, simple syrup would be better. Simple syrup made from brown/demerera sugar would be even better than that. (And Depaz Cane Syrup from Martinique would be the ultimate).</li><li>Cream** -- add about half an inch of heavy cream. Whipping the cream a bit in a mixer if you have the patience.</li><li>Take a sip and make adjustments to strike the perfect balance of coffee, sweetness and whiskey. Do this four or five times, such that you need to keep adding to the glass. By the time you're ready to serve one glass, you should have consumed around three.</li></ol>** Keep it simple. Don't add Bailey's Irish Cream or Emmett's or any of the other lame knockoffs fer chrissakes. That would just bastardize a perfectly good Irish Coffee.
Irish Whisk[b]e[/b]y (odd fact: the UK, Canada, Australia and Japan spell it [i]whisky[/i], without the "e"): Unlike scotch, which has distinctive bold flavors (i.e., peat/smoke/iodine/brine), Irish whiskey is mostly barley and no peat, the end result being that it is far more mellow. There are a handful of Irish whiskeys on the market:<ul><li>[b]Jameson[/b] - The classic Irish whiskey (for Irish catholics), Jameson is actually owned by the French bev giant Pernod. They only use barley grown near the distillery in Cork. Jameson has a nice flavor that improves with the age (and price) of the bottle. For Irish coffee, however, entry level Jameson is fine ($30).</li><li>[b]Bushmill's[/b] - Distilled in Northern Ireland (and considered by some to be the "protestant" whiskey). My go-to brand for Irish whiskey, I prefer it slightly to Jameson's. Black Bush ($30) and the 10 Year ($40) both retain the whiskey edge while still being reliable sippers.</li><li>[b]Redbreast[/b] ($40) - One of my favorite whiskeys, it's produced at the Jameson distillery. Supposedly it's the only pure pot-stilled whiskey, but whatever-- it's a balanced, near-perfect expression of Irish whiskey.</li><li>[b]Knappogue Castle[/b] ($40) - Not very well known, KC has a golden straw color to it, and a lighter, grassier taste. It's slightly different while still being unmistakably whiskey, and I enjoy it a lot.</li><li>[b]Midleton's[/b] - At $110+ a bottle, it's the most extravagant of the Irish whiskeys, but it's also the richest, smoothest and most complex. It's my favorite brand of all whiskeys (and whiskys, for that matter). Unless you're Donald Trump, mixing Midleton's in an Irish coffee or any other drink would be total lunacy.</li><li>[b]The Knot[/b] ($30) - The Knot is technically not a whiskey, it's a liqueur. It's the Southern Comfort of Irish whiskeys. At 100 proof, it packs a punch. It's sweet (but not quite cloying) with a vanilla cinnamon kick to it, which has the added benefit of making it the most likely brand that a lady might actually try and enjoy.</li></ul>
[b]Irish Coffee Recipe[/b]
The ingredients are: Irish whiskey, coffee, sugar, cream. Hard to screw up, but then St. Patrick's Day [i]is[/i] amateur hour. <ol><li>Prepare your coffee. Don't flake out, this is an Irish drink-- make it strong. You'll want 4 ounces of strong black coffee. Use a mug or wine glass with plenty of room, so you can add whiskey or cream to suit your taste.</li><li>Add a shot of Irish whiskey. You can't go wrong with any of the whiskeys listed above (with the exception of Midleton).</li><li>Add sugar. Actually, simple syrup would be better. Simple syrup made from brown/demerera sugar would be even better than that. (And Depaz Cane Syrup from Martinique would be the ultimate).</li><li>Cream** -- add about half an inch of heavy cream. Whipping the cream a bit in a mixer if you have the patience.</li><li>Take a sip and make adjustments to strike the perfect balance of coffee, sweetness and whiskey. Do this four or five times, such that you need to keep adding to the glass. By the time you're ready to serve one glass, you should have consumed around three.</li></ol>** Keep it simple. Don't add Bailey's Irish Cream or Emmett's or any of the other lame knockoffs fer chrissakes. That would just bastardize a perfectly good Irish Coffee.