On tonight's Tom Dunne Show Oisin Davis, of Great Irish Beverages, concocts a Tipperary cocktail.
Oisin says, "When the legendary Irish tenor Count John McCormack set sail for New York in the early 20th century, it was hot on the heels of his first international number 1 hit. That was a wee ditty called "It's a long way to Tipperary."
When news that this pop star was about to hit Manhattan for a residency of gigs, a very enterprising bar manager of The Wallick Hotel by the name of Hugo Enslinn, had a crafty idea. He was familiar with a fairly strong but relatively obscure cocktail that had been doing the rounds since the late 19th century which was actually called The Tipperary. And he knew if he made the best Tipperary in New York then surely Count John would frequent his bar and bring with him all those nice things that popstars bring along with them, like groupies and hordes of media. That is precisely what happened. Enslinn perfected his Tipperary and told the world how good it was. When McCormack's ship docked in Manhattan, he quickly started hanging out in The Wallick Hotel drinking and dishing out many Tipperary cocktails. Thus bringing fame and notoriety to not just to the hotel where Enslinn worked, but onto himself as well. He went on to write some great drinks books and is still celebrated today. As is of course, McCormack, one of the world's first global pop megastars, who hailed from Athlone.
INGREDIENTS:
20 ml Jameson Irish Whiskey
20 ml green Chartreuse
20 ml sweet Italian vermouth
1 rosemary sprig with 3 green olives spiked onto it
METHOD:
Combine all ingredients in a shaker with some ice. Stir for about 20 seconds and strain into an iced old fashioned glass. Garnish with the rosemary sprig. Sláinte!
