This summer my partner discovered the wonders of an espresso martini. Some might say he’s two summers too late (it’s me, I might say that). Others could argue bartenders have had time to perfect their versions and up the ante on them following the New York Times 2021 declaration. And still others (me, again) might say that you should drink whatever you want—but also that you can keep your espresso martini because the only coffee cocktail I want this summer is an iced Irish coffee.
James Beard, that father of American gastronomy, surely knew the joys of iced coffee as much as any queer java lover. Add a dash of whiskey and what better way is there to start a morning (or keep an evening going)? But while his recipe for Chilled Irish Coffee has plenty of merits, there are some modern conveniences that make it even better.
For one, Beard calls for freshly brewed coffee, which he mixes with sugar and chills. But using a traditional hot method for brewing coffee only to put it in the fridge isn’t the best way to maintain the drink’s flavor. Letting coffee linger at warm temperatures can make it taste stale and ashen. For home cooks who already have a go-to cold coffee situation in place (whether homemade or store-bought), there’s a better way: Reach for the simple syrup.
You won’t land on Beard’s original ratios, exactly, but that’s okay: Who do you know that takes their coffee exactly the same as somebody else? When I first made this recipe, I followed Beard’s lead and the result was a little dry for my taste. I ended up adding a dash more sweetener, though I usually take my morning cup sugar-free. Freeing yourself from strict adherence to the recipe allows you to make this drink with the cold-brew concentrate you already keep on hand, or to stick to the flash-brewing or shaking-on-ice method you’ve got down to a science.
For 8 oz. of coffee (either diluted cold brew concentrate or ready-to-drink chilled coffee), I like ½ oz. of 1:1 simple syrup (demerara if you have it). Otherwise, the measurements stay the same (2 oz. Irish whiskey plus 2 oz. heavy cream).
It’s a perfect brunch cocktail for summer: getting both your caffeine and boozy drink in one leaves plenty of room on the table for an extra dish of fruit salad or breakfast casserole. And because it’s a pour-and-stir drink (unlike the shaken espresso martini), dolloped both up top and on the bottom with a spoonful of whipped cream, it’s easy to scale up if you want to have people over. Come to think of it, it’s also pretty easy to make and drink a pitcher just for two. Is it Saturday yet?
