This St. Patrick’s Day, why not serve up some Irish Coffee along with the corned beef and boiled cabbage?
Or, serve up some Irish Coffee and no boiled cabbage. It’s really up to you and how much you enjoy boiling water.
If you just want to make some “straight,” to-the-point Irish coffee—Check out our article and recipe here.
But if you want to give your coffee a special twist for St. Patty’s day, stay tuned.
I know what you’re thinking—I promise it’s not just adding green food coloring. I’d imagine that would look pretty bad in a coffee colored drink (it certainly wouldn’t look green, anyway).
Tip: If you just want an easy way to green up your Irish Coffee and you’re in a hurry, there’s a much easier way than the following method. Just make an Irish Coffee topped with whipped cream, and dust the cream with some green sprinkles.
How to Make It
Before we get started, there are three keys to making this green Irish cocktail:
- The Layers – You’ll need a cocktail layering tool for this baby—kind of like the tool you use to make a nice Black & Tan. You can find them on Amazon, but you can probably also find one at your local beer & wine center/classy alcohol store.
- The Alcohol – Unlike the standard Irish Cocktail recipe, we’re going to use some clear Irish alcohol.
- The Coffee You Use – An alcoholic coffee cocktail works best with a strong coffee—both in taste (to stand out among the other flavors), and in caffeine content (to counteract the sleepiness that can come with drinking alcohol).
While this drink is layered for looks, you’ll most likely want to stir it before drinking it to mix the flavors. So it’s important to use a strong coffee as a base.
For a coffee with an ideal strength and a complementary flavor profile of macadamia nuts, hazelnut, caramel, and dark chocolate—that won’t get lost in the shuffle of all the cocktail ingredients—I suggest Black Insomnia’s “Extreme Caffeine” Dark Roast.
(If you prefer a lighter coffee, the Classic Roast will work just fine too.)
Ingredients
- Bailey’s Irish Cream
- Freshly Brewed Coffee
- Irish Moonshine or Clear Irish Whiskey
- Green Food Coloring (You knew it was coming at some point)
- Green Creme De Menthe (Optional – for a grasshopper-y kick)
- Whipped Topping (Optional)
Instructions
- Combine your Irish Moonshine/Clear Whiskey and a little bit of green food coloring in a glass (separate from the one you will be serving the drink in.) Stir until the color is consistent.
- Use your cocktail layering tool to layer all of the ingredients into the glass you are serving, in the following order:
- First – Add the coffee
- Second – Slowly pour in the Bailey’s
- Third – Slowly add your green Irish Moonshine or Whiskey
- (Optional) Fourth – Pour a layer of green creme de menthe on top.
- Remove the layering tool from the glass.
- (Optional) Add whipped topping.
- Sláinte! (That’s a toast. It means “health!”)
You’ll most likely want to stir this before you drink it, but it sure looks great while it’s sitting there waiting to be drunk. Er, waiting to be drank.
One sip, and your guests will be saying “Begorrah!” in no time.
