Bombs Away

The Irish Car Bomb, the quintessential drop drink enjoyed at college bars and Irish pubs across the country. You may be familiar with it, but if you're asking, "what the hell is it?" or "can I handle it?" or you're just a fan, read on!

An Irish Car Bomb begins with a half pint of a Guinness beer - an Irish stout, yes it's black, yes it looks full-bodied, but the reality is that it's under 5% ABV, creamy and easier to drink than water. Is the widely distributed Guinness Draught the original product you would find in Ireland? I'm not jumping to a conclusion until I drink Guinness at a pub in Dublin myself.

You'll also be served a shot glass filled with Irish cream liqueur and Irish whiskey. The most popular brands would be Bailey's and Jameson's accordingly, but most of us wouldn't be able to taste the difference. Sometimes the shot will be layered or floated, other times the shot will be a blended mess of beige, it depends on the bartender and in this case presentation really doesn't matter.

As I mentioned before, an Irish Car Bomb is a drop drink, this means that a shot of something is dropped into a glass of something else and chugged. Other examples would include the Jager Bomb, Sake Bomb and Wisconsin Lunchbox. When you're ready to drink, you'll most likely toast with your friends before you drop your shot glass into your pint and drink. My first tip: ease your shot glass into the pint glass, don't actually drop it. You'll splash Guinness on to the floor, detract attention from your amazing chug, and look like a rookie to the bystanders. Next, you don't want to be sloppy, but try to be quick. The Irish Car Bomb is unique in that if it's not consumed fast enough, the Irish liqueur curdles, leaving a sour, slimey mess that is unpleasant to say the least. It's somewhere between sour milk, plain yogurt and flan.

You definitely won't have to worry about that if you finish your Car Bomb in under 3 seconds. Not to mention that most, if not all, of your fellow drinkers will fail to beat you. If you're drinking alone and want to see how you measure up, compete against a YouTube video.

My tips? Big swallows. Open up wide and drink like you haven't had liquid in days. If you can finish an Irish Car Bomb in 3 swallows instead of 4, it makes a huge impact on your time. If it's your first time, open up, imagine you're dying in the Sahara, and chug. You'll be pleasantly surprised with a creamy and sweet finish.

Cheers!