The Irish Car Bomb is a famous (or infamous) drink that involves dropping a shot of equal parts Baileys and Jameson Irish Whiskey into a half-pint of Guinness. In a display that always gets the attention of the surrounding crowd, patrons must chug the drink before the cream, whiskey, and beer start to curdle. Irish Car Bombs get on my nerves for three reasons:

(1) The drink has no known connection to Ireland. As best I can tell, the Irish Car Bomb is a thoroughly American drink that uses famously Irish ingredients. It’s about as Irish as a Bennigan’s.

(2) Have you ever really stopped and thought about this drink’s name? For people living in Ireland, car bombs definitely aren’t a whimsical thing, and it’s not what the Irish want their country to be known for. It would be as tasteless as naming a cocktail after an IED—
wait… [checks google]… okay, wow. Unfortunately, someone has actually done that, so maybe I need to go more obscure. Let’s go with “naming a cocktail after the Unabomber”—
wait… [checks google]… Seriously? You’ve got to be kidding me. That one’s out there too. I may have lost a little faith in humanity just now, but I digress. The name is tasteless; moving on…

(3) I’m a big believer in the sipping drink. For me personally, taking your time with a beverage is part of the enjoyment of it, and as such, I just don’t enjoy any drink that I have to chug before it curdles.

So yeah, those are my three reasons for not liking the Irish Car Bomb: not actually Irish, crappy name, and cocktails shouldn’t have time limits. Of course, even with these issues, the drink offers some potential. Baileys and whiskey pair beautifully in a one-to-one ratio, and I’m always a fan of a good rich stout. Maybe this thing’s not beyond saving if we doctor it a little.

Let’s start out with that shot and turn it into a legitimate sipper.
Since the Irish Car Bomb isn’t actually Irish, I feel no guilt about opting for a bourbon to bring a little more complexity than the simple bite of Jameson. I haven’t used Four Roses in a while, and it’s vanilla and caramel notes will interplay well with Baileys. Also, I’m thinking of this as an after-dinner drink, so this is a perfect time to showcase the latest addition to the back porch herb garden: chocolate mint, a mint hybrid with a flavor reminiscent of an Andes Mint. While the chocolate mint offers a little more subtlety than the stuff I’d put in a mojito, it still needs a bit of spice to balance it out, so I’m reaching for the aztec chocolate bitters. Let’s roll this gently in the shaker (so as not to shred the mint), double strain, and serve over an ice ball with a chocolate mint sprig as garnish. You could get really fancy and throw whipped cream in there or even rim the glass with cocoa powder— I’ve opted to do the latter since this one’s for Jessi. Here’s the recipe:

St. Paddy’s Southern Sipper
1 oz Baileys
1 oz Four Roses bourbon
3-4 chocolate mint leaves
4 dashes aztec chocolate bitters
sprig of chocolate mint for garnish
cocoa powder (optional)

As for the beer component, Guinness was actually my introduction to beer, and the Guinness family offer a fascinating story of faith, compassion, and industry. I’ll write a post about them at some point, but I highly recommend Stephen Mansfield’s The Search for God and Guinness if you’d like to learn more. Given the availability of craft beer in my area, I don’t really see pairing our sipper with something as widely available as a Guinness. Thankfully, I’ve got just the beer to drink alongside it.

Meet Aardwolf Brewing Company’s Caganer, an imperial stout prepared with cocoa and vanilla. Located just around the corner from Swaim United Methodist Church here in the San Marco neighborhood, Aardwolf is probably best known for their sours, making this sweet chocolatey stout a very unexpected find. It’s 10.8% ABV, so make sure you take it in moderation, especially when pairing it with our sipper.

So there you have it: The Classy Car Bomb, a St. Paddy’s Southern Sipper accompanied by a rich cocoa vanilla imperial stout. It’s a flavorful modification of a traditional American St. Paddy’s Day drink, but unlike it’s inspiration, there’s no need to rush through this one. Instead, sit and savor with good company. As one final addition, I’m serving this two-part drink with a Peterbrooke “Black & Tan” (a Guinness-based ganache wrapped in rich dark chocolate). All this together makes one awesomely intoxicating dessert perfectly suited for St. Paddy’s.