After Guinness, the Irish coffee is quite possibly Ireland’s most famous drink. This hot cocktail is a mixture of coffee, whiskey, sugar, and cream. It’s famous thanks to the Buena Vista Cafe, a San Francisco establishment that perfected the recipe in 1952 and has since served countless glasses to thirsty bar-goers. I headed to the cafe to learn its signature technique for making this iconic drink. Here, bartender Paul Nolan, who’s been behind the bar for 35 years and estimates he’s poured between 3 and 4 million Irish coffees, teaches us how it’s done.
