Double Irish Coffee
Irish Coffee has to be the perfect drink for a blog dedicated to beer, coffee and whisky; a sweet, whiskey-augmented coffee with cream floating on it that looks more than a little like a beer!
To celebrate Saint Patrick's Day, I've decided to push the Irishness up to 11, by making this Double Irish Coffee. Double? Well yes, not only is the whiskey Irish, but the coffee is too.
The lovely folk at Bord Bia have sent Pete Drinks some coffee from Bewley's, one of Ireland's oldest and best known coffee importers and roasters and this seems an excellent way to introduce it.
To make a Double Irish Coffee, take a strong Irish coffee, such as the Bewley's Panama, and an Irish whiskey – something cheap and cheerful like the Jameson I reviewed this week.
Make a regular black coffee; I used my trusty AeroPress to make a single shot, and then topped it up with hot water. Sweeten it with a spoon or two of sugar, which will help the cream float later.
Add a shot of whiskey. I know it's tempting to make it two or three shots, but it's important to maintain a balance.
Pour on some double cream. It took me a couple of attempts and some googling to get it to float properly. The secret is to put a spoon right side up, flat on the surface of the coffee and pour the cream slowly onto it. The cream will then spill from the bowl of the spoon already at the surface of the coffee, and not sink.
The result? A seriously tasty drink! The coffee is rich enough to hold its own against the cream and the whiskey, without becoming bitter. The whiskey itself gives a nice heat, but without overwhelming everything or making the drink more of a hot toddy than a coffee.
Forget Guinness. Double Irish Coffee is good for you!
This post was originally published 17th March, 2013. It was last updated 1st June, 2023.