Welcome to our cocktail series, The Happy Hour. It's Friday afternoon. Make yourself a drink.
The Irish take a lot of ribbing on St. Patrick's Day: for overindulgence, for green beer, for the bad parade hats. But for Toby Maloney, co-founder of Alchemy Consulting (clients include The Violet Hour in Chicago, The Patterson House in Nashville, and Bradstreet Crafthouse in Minneapolis), the holiday is an excuse to craft a sophisticated drink that has throwback appeal as well as seasonality.
Maloney combines Irish whiskey, whipping cream, and demerara simple syrup. Then he adds a bit of smoky Scotch (for the "smell of a merrily crackling fire," he says) and orange-flower water (as a "reminder of warm days"). Maloney's respect for the occasion comes naturally--his grandmother emigrated from Ireland's County Cork. See more ideas in our St. Patrick's Day cooking guide. --Andrew Knowlton