Who Invented the Irish Coffee?
Few drinks feel as unmistakably Irish as an Irish Coffee — that perfect blend of hot coffee, Irish whiskey, brown sugar, and lightly whipped cream. It has become a national treasure, a winter comfort, and a ritual for visitors who want to taste something authentically Irish. But where did it actually come from, and who first decided to spike coffee with a warming drop of whiskey?
The answer takes us back to the windswept Atlantic coast and an unlikely birthplace: a flying-boat terminal in Co. Limerick.
A Cold Night at Foynes: The Birthplace of Irish Coffee
The most widely accepted and well-documented origin story begins in the early 1940s at Foynes, the transatlantic flying-boat hub near Limerick. Long before Shannon Airport existed, Foynes was the gateway between Europe and North America. Flights were long, rough, and often diverted due to wild Atlantic weather.
On one such miserable night around 1943, a flight was forced to turn back to Foynes. Passengers arrived cold, tired, and hungry — and it fell to the terminal’s chef, Joe Sheridan, to comfort them.
Sheridan brewed fresh coffee, added a generous measure of Irish whiskey, dissolved in a little sugar, and finished it with cream gently floated on top. When a passenger asked if it was “Brazilian coffee,” Sheridan famously replied:
The name stuck. So did the recipe.
How Irish Coffee Travelled the World
For a while, the drink remained a Foynes secret — enjoyed by travellers and staff but unknown elsewhere. That changed when Stanton Delaplane, an American travel writer and Pulitzer Prize winner, tasted it at what was soon to become Shannon Airport.
Delaplane was captivated. He brought the idea back to San Francisco, where he worked with the Buena Vista Café to recreate Sheridan’s original method. After several failed attempts (the cream kept sinking), the café finally perfected it. On 10 November 1952, Buena Vista served its first Irish Coffee — and the drink’s global journey began.
Today, they still serve thousands every day, crediting Joe Sheridan as the inventor.
Why Irish Coffee Endures
Irish Coffee has survived because it’s more than a drink — it’s a feeling. It’s the warmth of an Irish welcome, the comfort of a fireside pub, and the kind of simple perfection Ireland does so well.
It’s also, quite literally, the taste of Irish hospitality: created to warm weary travellers on a stormy night.
Thinking of Trying One in Ireland?
Whether you’re planning to enjoy an Irish Coffee along the Wild Atlantic Way, in a cosy Dublin pub, or at the original Foynes Flying Boat & Maritime Museum, it’s a ritual worth experiencing in Ireland itself.
If you love stories like this, you’ll find more Irish history, culture, and travel inspiration each day in the Love Ireland Newsletter.
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