Photo: Getty
St. Patrick’s Day is here and the parties, bar crawls, and other festivities will be in full swing all week. We’ve put together a nice collection of clever cocktails that fit the theme of St. Patrick’s Day as best we could connect.
Breaking the fourth wall here: St. Patrick’s Day isn’t something I grew up celebrating, nor do I have a ton of Irish friends. I do, however, have plenty of pals who like to have a good beverage or two, and this weekend is a prime time for such activity.
SPD began as a celebration in Ireland to honor St. Patrick, a patron saint of the nation. Irish immigrants to the Unnited States brought SPD to our shores, and the holiday became less about St. Patrck and more about raucous celebrations at homes and local watering holes.
As I did last year, I’ll share Britanica‘s explanation of what SPD is instead of my ham-handed attempt:
It was emigrants, particularly to the United States, who transformed St. Patrick’s Day into a largely secular holiday of revelry and celebration of things Irish. Cities with large numbers of Irish immigrants, who often wielded political power, staged the most extensive celebrations, which included elaborate parades. Boston held its first St. Patrick’s Day parade in 1737, followed by New York City in 1762. Since 1962 Chicago has coloured its river green to mark the holiday. (Although blue was the colour traditionally associated with St. Patrick, green is now commonly connected with the day.) Irish and non-Irish alike commonly participate in the “wearing of the green”—sporting an item of green clothing or a shamrock, the Irish national plant, in the lapel.
I know I’ll be having a few Irish coffees over the weekend, a drink I never get enough of and crave around this time of year. I’m also keen to try out some of the green-tinged numbers we’ve amassed below. As always, if you plan to indulge, do so safely and surely, and please have a great St. Patrick’s Day.
1. Belle Bulle (Belle de Brillet)
Source: Belle de Brillet
Ingredients:
1.75 oz Belle de Brillet
0.5 oz Lemon Juice
3.5 oz Soda Water
2 green olives as a garnish and a pinch of salt to release the flavors
Instructions:
In a large wine glass, filled with ice cubes, pour the ingredients and mix.
