I will only have one at the end of the day after shes had a nice big feeding before her longest stretch of sleep. Plus that one bevy is followed by a lot of water, and is on a full stomach.Yes, I feel perfectly OK about this wee drink-i-poo, every now and then. Especially, when that drink is Guinness. Not just because its low-cal, only 198 calories makes it a more dietary choice than most light beers, wine, and even low-fat milk, but because the stuff is freakin delicious. Whether or not it's chock-full of B vitamins, iron and protein is subject to debate, but I prefer to think it does.
Anyway I've pulled many, many, many a tap in my day. Bartending is pretty much the only life I've ever known (until parenthood), and, until now, pubs have nearly always been the place I feel most at home. All through pregnancy with my son and daughter I tended, and 5 weeks after my first born came, my family opened a pub and my husband and I worked there. We had a back room office that doubled as a nursery. At first I tried to stay mostly in the back, but good help is so hard to find, that Id find myself with my little man in a sling, slinging drinks. "Old World" was what the papers called it. Sometimes it felt just plain crazy, like when his first flash cards were Guinness, Harp, Newcastle, and Smithwicks coasters. But he loved it. The public loved him. He was kind of an attraction really. Those were some days to remember.
Anyways. Today is a gorgeous fall day, and Jim had that day off. We just got home from a lovely family walk where we stopped at the liquor store and bought some beers. We always buy mix and match cans of import. Snobs I guess, but really we just love the variety from too many years of standing in front of 16 taps. Today we had to do the Guinness thing but with a twist. I've heard it called a few things over the years, and have had folks confuse it with the Black & Tan, but I'm talking about Black Velvet, baby.
Black Velvet for two at home is super easy, so get ready for a treat.
You need:
2 pint glasses at least 16oz., preferably with no etching in the bottom, tulip shaped, or standard sleeve.
1 can Guinness
1 can cider. Magners, Blackthorn and even Sir Perry's pear cider are my faves in that order, but any cider will work. If you prefer dry to sweet opt for the Blackthorn.
The Guinness doesn't need to be warm, but if you pull it from your fridge about 15 minutes before you pour you'll get better results.
Pour the cider first. Fill only half way, ideally right to where the glass starts to bulge( the wider surface area helps the Guinness float)
Then layer the Guinness. Spoons are really not necessary. Not from a tap, or from a can. (FYI, don't do the bottles. Just not the same.) If you tip the glass to a 45 degree angle and pour nice and easy down the side of the glass, you should wind up with half and half's you can predict weather by. Thats what the good old boys from the Irish Club used to say about my pints.
There you have it, kids. Drink responsibly. Oh, and CHEERS :)
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