Irish coffee was invented in Shannon in 1943, when flying boats from the United States to Europe used the wide waterway of the Shannon estuary to land at Foynes, Co Limerick, where today the “Foynes Flying Boat Museum” recalls that era. As cold and weary passengers arrived off the flying boats they were given the warm and welcoming drink to aid their recovery. Nowadays, each August, Foynes plays host to the Irish Coffee Festival and a competition is held to choose the “World Champion Irish Coffee Maker”.
Ingredients:
Cream – rich as an Irish brogue.
Coffee – strong as a friendly hand. Sugar- sweet as the tongue of a rogue.
Irish whiskey- smooth as the wit of the land
Method: Heat a stemmed whiskey goblet. Pour in one jigger of Irish whiskey. Add two spoons of demerara sugar then fill with strong, black coffee to within one inch of the brim. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Then, when still, top with slightly whipped cream, so that it fl oats on top. The secret is to drink the hot laced coffee through the cold cream.