Transform Your Irish Coffee With One Creamy Canned Ingredient

When it comes to after-dinner drinks, Irish coffee is like no other. With its warm and cozy flavors, it's the perfect way to unwind and relax after a long day. While it's a tried-and-true cocktail as is, adding just one simple ingredient — sweetened condensed milk — can transform your Irish coffee into a unique mixological experience like no other. Inspired by traditional Vietnamese coffee, adding sweetened condensed milk to your Irish coffee provides an indulgent, caramel-like sweetness and significantly boosts the cocktail's richness. 

Typically, Irish coffees are made with a source of sugar, whether that's brown sugar, demerara sugar, or just plain, white sugar. Here, the sweetened condensed milk acts as a replacement for these sweeteners, becoming the star of the show in the process. Due to the sweetened condensed milk's dairy content, your cocktail will have a smooth and luxurious mouth feel, with a decadent, creamy richness. Not only will the sweetened condensed milk make your Irish coffee taste like the world's best alcoholic latte, but it will give the perfect balance to the more bitter or astringent notes of the coffee and Irish whiskey. The best part of this cocktail? It can be made at home with only four ingredients.

Making Vietnamese coffee-inspired Irish coffee at home is surprisingly simple. In the bottom of a glass toddy mug (or other heatproof coffee mug), add sweetened condensed milk to taste. If you want to impress your guests with a fancy presentation, you can smear the sides of the glass with the sweetened condensed milk, creating a striking visual contrast to the dark coffee when the drink is completed. Next, pour in your freshly-brewed, hot coffee, allowing the creamy sweetened condensed milk to dissolve into the mixture. The best type of coffee for a well-balanced Irish coffee is medium-roasted, but you can select another type if that's your preference.

From there, add a shot of your favorite Irish whiskey. If you're unsure which brand of whiskey to use, we've previously compiled the 16 best whiskeys for Irish coffee. Finally, top with whipped cream. If you're in a pinch, store-bought, pre-made whipped cream works fine, but if you want a truly authentic Irish coffee experience, you should make your own whipped cream using heavy whipping cream. A cream tip for your Irish coffee is to use a blender when whipping your heavy cream, as it thickens the cream slowly, creating the perfect, cloud-like texture.