How Do You Make a Real Irish Coffee?

A real Irish coffee is hot, strong coffee sweetened with sugar, a measure of Irish whiskey and lightly whipped cream floated on top without stirring, and the International Bartenders Association (IBA) specifies 50 ml of Irish whiskey, 120 ml of hot coffee, 50 ml of chilled fresh cream and 1 teaspoon of sugar. The drink is usually traced to chef Joe Sheridan at the Foynes flying boat terminal in Ireland in the early 1940s, and KQED dates its San Francisco debut at the Buena Vista Cafe to 10 November 1952.

Key Takeaways

• The most widely told origin story credits Joe Sheridan, a chef at Foynes, with adding Irish whiskey to coffee for stranded passengers. Punch dates the story to 1943, and the Foynes museum says Sheridan applied for the chef job that year.

• Travel writer Stanton Delaplane of the San Francisco Chronicle worked with the Buena Vista Cafe owner to recreate it there. KQED places the first attempt on 10 November 1952.

• The IBA recipe is 50 ml Irish whiskey, 120 ml hot coffee, 50 ml chilled fresh cream and 1 teaspoon of sugar.

• The method matters as much as the ingredients: a preheated glass, sugar dissolved in the coffee, and cream poured over the back of a spoon so it floats.

• Writers pick both blends and single pot still whiskeys for Irish coffee. The Buena Vista Cafe uses Tullamore Dew.

• A hot drink still contains the full amount of alcohol from the whiskey, so enjoy it in moderation.

Tip: Make the coffee stronger than you would normally drink it. The sugar, whiskey and cream all soften it, and a weak brew disappears underneath them.

Where Does Irish Coffee Come From?

The best known account places it at Foynes, the Irish flying boat terminal on the Shannon Estuary, where Joe Sheridan worked as a chef. The Foynes Flying Boat and Maritime Museum says Sheridan applied for the job in 1943 and was hired by Brendan O'Regan. The museum says he invented the drink while working for O'Regan but gives no exact date. Punch, the drinks publication, dates the invention to 1943, on a night when a flight bound for Newfoundland turned back in bad weather and Sheridan served the passengers coffee spiked with Irish whiskey. KQED tells the same story but says the Pan Am flight was bound for New York. Sources therefore differ on the destination, so treat that detail as part of the legend rather than settled fact.

After Foynes closed in 1945, the service moved to the airport now known as Shannon. The museum says that in 1951 the American journalist Stanton Delaplane passed through Rineanna, now Shannon, and was served an Irish coffee there. Delaplane wrote for the San Francisco Chronicle and told his friend Jack Koeppler, owner of the Buena Vista Cafe, about the drink. KQED reports that on 10 November 1952 the two tried to recreate it at the Buena Vista bar. Their early attempts failed because the cream sank to the bottom, and Koeppler later travelled to Foynes to learn more. The museum adds that Koeppler offered Sheridan a job at the Buena Vista in 1952 and that he emigrated to America to take it.

The story is not undisputed. KQED quotes the drinks author Eric Felten, who suggests the drink may be older and may have been invented around 1940 at the Dolphin pub in Dublin, and who points to a recipe in a 1948 column by the New York food critic Clementine Paddleford. Lea Hausherr, the Buena Vista's informal historian, puts it simply: it was not originated in San Francisco, but it was introduced first in San Francisco to America.

What Is the Classic Irish Coffee Recipe?

The IBA lists Irish Coffee among its Contemporary Classics. Its recipe uses these amounts for one drink:

• 50 ml Irish whiskey

• 120 ml hot coffee

• 50 ml fresh cream, chilled

• 1 teaspoon sugar. The IBA says plain sugar can be replaced with sugar syrup.

The Buena Vista Cafe, which made the drink famous in the United States, works to a slightly different formula. In the recipe 7x7 magazine credits to the bar, a drink uses 1.5 oz of Tullamore Dew Irish whiskey, hot brewed coffee, two sugar cubes and a spoon sized dollop of cream that the bar ages for 48 hours. Punch gives the same base of two sugar cubes and 1.5 oz of whiskey with 4 oz of hot coffee. Phil Dwyer of The Whiskey Wash suggests 2 oz of whiskey, 4.5 oz of hot coffee, 2 oz of chilled cream and a tablespoon or a cube of brown sugar. The type of sugar is a matter of taste.

How Do You Build It Step by Step?

1. Warm the glass

The IBA calls for a preheated Irish coffee glass. 7x7 describes the same habit at the Buena Vista, which is to rinse the glass with hot water before building the drink. A warm glass keeps the coffee hot for longer.

2. Dissolve the sugar in hot coffee

Add the sugar to the glass, pour in the hot coffee and stir until the sugar dissolves, as the IBA and 7x7 recipes both describe.

3. Add the whiskey

Stir the Irish whiskey into the sweetened coffee. Leave room at the top of the glass for the cream. KQED reports that the Buena Vista recipe fills the glass with coffee to about three quarters.

4. Float the cream, and do not stir

The IBA method is to hold a spoon just above the surface and pour the thick, chilled cream slowly over the back of it so it floats as a separate layer. Punch says the Buena Vista ages its heavy cream for several days and whips it lightly with a milkshake blender, adding just enough air to make it frothy but not stiff. The drink is then sipped through the cream rather than stirred.

Which Irish Whiskey Works Best in Irish Coffee?

There is no single rule. In a round up for The Whiskey Wash, freelance whisky writer Phil Dwyer picks Redbreast 12 Year Old, a single pot still whiskey at 40% ABV, for its buttery texture, sweet fruit and spice from unmalted barley. The Buena Vista itself uses Tullamore Dew. A sensible approach is to choose an Irish whiskey you already enjoy drinking.

Blends are lighter and softer. Jameson Irish Whiskey Triple Distilled is listed by retailers as a triple distilled blend of pot still and grain whiskeys at 40% ABV. These are retailer listings, not figures confirmed on Jameson's own site. Teeling Small Batch is listed at 46% ABV by retailers, and Difford's Guide describes it as a blend of malt and grain whiskeys finished for six months in ex Flor de Cana rum casks.

Single pot still whiskeys add spice and body. Redbreast 12 Years Old and Powers Three Swallow both come from Midleton Distillery in County Cork. Dwyer credits unmalted barley for the spice in Redbreast, and the Spiritory guide to single pot still Irish whiskey explains how it differs from a blend.

Single malt is possible too. Bushmills 10 Years Old is triple distilled from 100% malted barley at 40% ABV and, according to Bushmills, matured for a minimum of 10 years in former sherry casks and bourbon seasoned casks. Dwyer says it would be a perfectly good choice for Irish coffee. To look at smaller producers for your next bottle, Irish distilleries beyond Jameson is a useful starting point.

What Are the Most Common Irish Coffee Mistakes?

• Skipping the preheated glass. The IBA calls for a preheated glass, and 7x7 describes the Buena Vista rinsing its glass with hot water.

• Using cream that is too stiff or too runny. Punch says the cream should be lightly whipped, with just enough air to be frothy but not stiff.

• Using cream that is too fresh. The Buena Vista ages its cream, and Punch notes that very fresh cream can fail to float. If you do not age yours, chill it well and whip it lightly.

• Stirring after the cream goes on. The IBA method relies on the cream floating on top without mixing in.

• Pouring the cream straight in. Pour slowly over the back of a spoon held just above the surface.

One more point is worth remembering. A hot drink still contains all the alcohol of the whiskey in it, so a 50 ml measure is a full pour of spirit.

Tip: Chill the cream well and pour it in a thin, slow stream. A steady pour over the back of a spoon spreads the cream across the surface and keeps the layer clean and distinct.

FAQ

Who invented Irish coffee?

Joe Sheridan, a chef at the Foynes flying boat terminal in Ireland, is the person usually credited, with Punch dating it to 1943. Some writers, including Eric Felten, suggest the drink may be older, possibly from a Dublin pub around 1940.

How did Irish coffee reach San Francisco?

Stanton Delaplane of the San Francisco Chronicle was served it at Shannon in 1951, according to the Foynes museum, and told Buena Vista owner Jack Koeppler. KQED says the two tried to recreate it at the Buena Vista on 10 November 1952.

How much whiskey goes into an Irish coffee?

The IBA recipe uses 50 ml of Irish whiskey with 120 ml of hot coffee and 50 ml of cream. The Buena Vista recipe as published by 7x7 uses 1.5 oz of Tullamore Dew. Amounts vary by source and glass size.

Should the cream be stirred in?

No. Pour it slowly over the back of a spoon so it floats, and sip the drink through the cream.

Does the alcohol cook off in a hot drink?

No, the hot coffee does not remove the alcohol. The whiskey goes into the glass at its full amount, so drink responsibly.