by Al Butler
Nancy Uisce, has been a dear friend and mistress of mine for many a year. She has kept me warm on cold winter nights, and helped me smile even as darkness threatened. Old friends she has called to my side when lonely, and through gentle guile given me new ones with which to laugh and joke. She is indeed charming and beautiful in her own right, with the strength to make any man fall deep into a dream of love, or a rage of passion. But, for all of her many attributes, Nancy is a rather plain old girl, steady and true yes, but not easily dressed up.
That is why cocktails made with Irish whiskey are few and far between, good ones that is.
Well, there is one Irish whiskey cocktail that I enjoy which embraces the natural body of Nancy Uisce, and that is “the Emerald”.
Ingredients:
2 oz. Irish whiskey
1 oz. Italian vermouth
1-2 dash orange bitters
Orange peel to garnish
Method:
Fill a mixing glass with cracked ice; add your vermouth, whiskey and bitters. Stir well until cold. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add an orange peel for garnish.
Notes: Be patient when stirring, you want to let the ice do its work of diluting (not too much) and of chilling the drink. The orange peel garnish really adds a nice boost to the cocktail, if you give it a little squeeze over the glass after straining, and a quick run around the rim.
The only thing green about the Emerald is its name thank god. The rather basic logic is, "If you mix rye, which they drink in New York, with vermouth, you get a Manhattan; therefore, Irish whiskey and vermouth must be an Emerald." Honestly it matters not, for this simple and elegant cocktail can be served any time of the year and is sure to please any who are enthralled and beguiled by Nancy Uisce. The smooth and mellow flavor will ease away doubt and worry if but for a short while, and grant the drinker a respite from fear and care.
Cheers
AL
 |
| A finer line up I couldn't imagine |
Nancy Uisce, has been a dear friend and mistress of mine for many a year. She has kept me warm on cold winter nights, and helped me smile even as darkness threatened. Old friends she has called to my side when lonely, and through gentle guile given me new ones with which to laugh and joke. She is indeed charming and beautiful in her own right, with the strength to make any man fall deep into a dream of love, or a rage of passion. But, for all of her many attributes, Nancy is a rather plain old girl, steady and true yes, but not easily dressed up.
That is why cocktails made with Irish whiskey are few and far between, good ones that is.
 |
| Nancy Uisce; simple but tempting. |
We have all seen and heard of the bright green concoctions ladled out on St. Patrick’s Day. Lovely golden Whiskey overwhelmed by crème de menthe and other equally vile ingredients, served in a martini glass as an “Erin” or “Everybody’s Irish”. Ever wonder why you don’t see these any other time of the year? It’s because they are terrible, and the idiot posers who choke them down can do so but once every three hundred and sixty five days. Nancy’s power rests in her simplicity, sadly, too many people ignore this fact, and they not only harm their guests, but so too negatively skew other’s perceptions of the spirit.
Well, there is one Irish whiskey cocktail that I enjoy which embraces the natural body of Nancy Uisce, and that is “the Emerald”.
 |
| Served "up" the Emerald has a bit of class. |
2 oz. Irish whiskey
1 oz. Italian vermouth
1-2 dash orange bitters
Orange peel to garnish
Method:
Fill a mixing glass with cracked ice; add your vermouth, whiskey and bitters. Stir well until cold. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add an orange peel for garnish.
Notes: Be patient when stirring, you want to let the ice do its work of diluting (not too much) and of chilling the drink. The orange peel garnish really adds a nice boost to the cocktail, if you give it a little squeeze over the glass after straining, and a quick run around the rim.
 |
| The name is the only thing green about this smooth drink. |
The only thing green about the Emerald is its name thank god. The rather basic logic is, "If you mix rye, which they drink in New York, with vermouth, you get a Manhattan; therefore, Irish whiskey and vermouth must be an Emerald." Honestly it matters not, for this simple and elegant cocktail can be served any time of the year and is sure to please any who are enthralled and beguiled by Nancy Uisce. The smooth and mellow flavor will ease away doubt and worry if but for a short while, and grant the drinker a respite from fear and care.
Cheers
AL
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