Baileys The Original Irish Cream

When Baileys launched in 1974 it created the cream liqueur category, marrying Irish whiskey with fresh dairy cream in a stable emulsion that needs no preservative. Half a century on it accounts for more than half of all spirits exported from Ireland, some eighty million bottles a year to around 180 countries. The cream is the story: a single dairy supplies it fresh from tens of thousands of Irish cows, making Baileys one of the largest buyers of Irish dairy outside the co-ops.

Bottled at 17%, it is soft and gently sweet with cocoa, caramel and vanilla over a light whiskey warmth. Behind the bar it is a body and dessert ingredient, adding dairy richness and sweetness: it floats into an Irish coffee, stands in for cream in an Espresso Martini, or layers as the top of a B-52. Note it is a dairy product once opened, so keep it cool and use it within a few months.