The Irish Car Bomb is a staple of the St. Patrick’s Day diet. This delightful bomb shot consists of Irish stout, Irish whiskey, and Irish cream, and is definitely a tasty addition to the line up of potent potables imbibed on this most auspicious of occasions.
The Irish Car Bomb was invented in 1979 by Charles Burke Cronin Oat at Wilson’s Saloon in Norwich, CT. Originally, Oat had crafted a shot he called “The Grandfather” which was two parts Baileys and one part Kahlua. He felt something was missing from this and eventually added a splash of Irish whiskey on top of the shot. Commenting on the bubbling explosion-like reaction the whiskey had on the shot, Oat proclaimed “the IRA just showed up!” Thus, the Grandfather became the IRA. Several years later, while Oat was drinking IRAs and Guinness, he impulsively dropped the explosive concoction into what was left of his beer and drank it. It was a success with other patrons and now we have the Irish Car Bomb.
In the time since then, Kahlua has been dropped from the recipe leaving only the Irish ingredients. However, the original Irish Car Bomb is still around. These days it’s called a Belfast Car Bomb.
Irish Car Bomb
- 1/2 pint Irish stout (typically Guinness)
- 1/2 ounce Irish cream (typically Bailey’s)
- 1/2 ounce Irish whiskey (typically Jameson)
Mix the Irish cream with the Irish whiskey in a shot glass. Pour the half-pint of stout into a pint glass. Drop the shot glass into the pint glass and slam.
Note: You should drink this as fast as possible because the way that the ingredients react to each other causes the Irish cream to curdle quickly. The flavor isn’t affected but drinking a half-pint of curdled anything is just plain gross.
Belfast Car Bomb
- 1/2 pint Irish stout (typically Guinness)
- 1/2 ounce Irish cream (typically Bailey’s)
- 1/4 ounce coffee liqueur (typically Kahlua)
- 1 splash Irish whiskey (typically Jameson)
Mix the Irish cream with the coffee liqueur in a shot glass. Add a splash of Irish whiskey on top of your shot. Pour a half-pint of Irish stout into a pint glass. Drop the shot glass into the pint glass and slam.