If you’ve ever enjoyed the contrast of a hot, whiskey-spiked brew with a layer of cold, velvety hand-whipped cream, you can thank a certain stormy winter night in 1943.
That’s when the world-famous after-dinner drink we know as Irish coffee was invented in a tiny airport in the village of Foynes, Ireland.
When a New York-bound flight suddenly had to turn back to the Foynes Airport to await better weather, passengers sought refuge in the terminal’s restaurant.
Tasked with warming them up, local chef Joe Sheridan added a generous pour of Irish whiskey and cream to their coffees.
It was an immediate hit. When asked whether the drink was of Brazilian origin, Sheridan wittily replied, “No, that was Irish coffee.” Long after the airport moved across the estuary to Shannon International Airport in 1945, Irish coffee continued its status as a welcoming drink for travelers, which included world presidents and Hollywood celebrities.
And Irish coffee did some travelling of its own. In 1952, it embarked on a transatlantic adventure when travel writer Stanton Delaplane brought the recipe back to the historic Buena Vista cafe in San Francisco, whose owner eventually recruited Chef Sheridan to the United States to shape the presence of Irish coffee there.
Today, the old airport is the Foynes Flying Boat and Maritime Museum, where visitors can also take a master class on making the perfect Irish coffee. And it’s particular.
“It must only be served in a six-ounce stemmed coffee glass,” says Head Mixologist Douglas Lee of Calgary’s Dorian Hotel.
“You have to warm the glass first, because a room temperature glass will steal away the heat the moment you pour in the coffee. The cream must be lightly hand-whipped into soft peaks; there’s no squirting from a canister here.
“You can find many amazing riffs on cocktails out there, but you don’t want to mess with a classic like Irish coffee.”
Make Joe Sheridan’s Irish Coffee Recipe.
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