Irish Sidecar

IRISH SIDECAR: Instead of mixing your Sidecar cocktail with cognac or brandy, celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day or any day by substituting with Irish Whiskey. Irish whiskey is noted for being light and smooth because it’s triple distilled and is made with unmalted barley. For this reason, Irish whiskey is a great mixer whiskey and works particularly well in the Sidecar formula. It’s hard not to like a drink when you’re faced with a sugar-rimmed coupe glass.

Requirements: Irish Whiskey (Jameson preferred), Cointreau, lemon juice, simple syrup, sugar for glass rim

• 2 oz. (or parts) Irish whiskey
• .75 oz. (or parts) Cointreau
• .75 oz. (or parts) fresh lemon juice
• .25 oz. (or parts) simple syrup

Rim a chilled coupe glass with water or lemon juice and dip the rim onto powdered sugar to create a sugar crust. Combine ingredients in an ice-filled shaker. Shake vigorously and strain into the coupe glass.

Comments: A Saint Patrick’s Day might go like this — Start the day with steel-cut Irish oatmeal and toasted Irish soda bread. Have a mid-day Guinness beer with corn beef & cabbage while wearing a funny green hat. Go to mass or nap. Have Irish stew with a pint of Black & Tan (Guinness beer & Bass Ale) for dinner and end it with an Irish Sidecar. Remember, all whiskey, according to many sources, began with Irish whiskey. And for that, we owe the old monasteries of Ireland.