Irish Coffee

In comparison to Irish whiskey, the Irish Coffee is actually a fairly recent invention. In the 1940s, the most common air route between America and Europe included a stop in Foynes, an air base near Limerick, Ireland. Given the temperamental nature of the weather in western Ireland though, short layovers often turned into overnight stays. On a winter's night in 1942, a particularly nasty storm sent a plane back to Foynes for the night. The restaurant was notified to prepare food and drink as usual, but chef Joe Sheridan decided to prepare something special for the passengers aboard the plane. Legend has it that one American passenger asked if he was drinking Brazilian coffee. “No,” Joe answered, “that's Irish Coffee.” Eventually, the recipe was discovered by travel writer Stanton Delaplane, who took it back to San Francisco with him, where it became a signature cocktail at the Buena Vista Hotel.