What Makes It Irish

Irish coffee: coffee and whiskey. I bet you could add whiskey to anything and call it Irish. Irish potatoes. Irish broccoli. I forgot: the natives north of the Channel don't eat green things.

Last week I had a recipe for Irish coffee. My only shot of joe this morning was a Starbux breakfast blend on the way to church, so after a fitful Sunday afternoon nap, I figured I'd make a pot. Dunkin Donuts, not Starbux. More on that another day.

The recipe called for an ounce and a half of whiskey to 6 ounces of coffee. Who drinks 6 ounces of coffee at a whack? My coffee cups are twice that size. Not to mention the travel mugs I cart around walking the dogs. A couple of those, and I'd be under the table for the evening. Obviously I'm not Irish.

So I decided to compromise: the ounce and a half of Jameson's, brown sugar, about 10 ounces of coffee, and whipped cream on top. Whipped cream makes anything taste better. Including my fingers. I keep telling people that, to no avail.

It wasn't bad, though I was busy IM'ing and the whipped cream dissolved by the second sip. I was sure feeling happier at the end of the cup. So happy, in fact, that I decided to try the proportions given in the recipe, only 6 ounces of coffee to a little less than a quarter cup of booze. You've gotta love those proportions.

That was even better. And the whipped cream didn't melt as fast. It's not a bad drink, especially on a cool January afternoon (luckily the sun has reappeared after several days in Florida). Irish coffee thus becomes one of my favorite drinks in this drinking adventure. If I have another I'll probably break into song, and no one wants that.