Aaaahhhhh, St. Patrick’s Day. A significant day of Éire go Brách pride. A day where everyone stakes a claim to Irish heritage and dons their best greens.
In preparation for sucking down pints of green beer (or any of the St. Patrick’s Day cocktails I’ve scouted for you), let’s start with a wee myth-busting lesson about the holiday, shall we?
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☘️????????. ???????????????????????????? wasn’t Irish, and his real name was Maewyn Succat.
☘️???????? ???????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????? driving snakes out of Ireland (when the Ice Age should really get that credit).
☘️???????? ???????????????? ???????????????????? ???????????????????????????? Irish immigrants believed wearing green made them invisible to leprechauns (who are known for pinching).
☘️???????? ???????????????????????????? ???????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????????? ????????????. That’s right, lads and lassies. Until the 1970s, pubs were closed on that day because it is a Holy Day and therefore a day of abstention. (My, how things have changed.)
☘️????????Á????????????????, pronounced slawn-che, is an Irish-Scottish Gaelic cheers to health.
Keep these nuggets of wisdom in mind as you drop into downtown establishments to drown your shamrock during the parade, which starts at 2 p.m., in the 7th Street James Brown Arena parking lot.
????Visit Metro A Coffeehouse and ask Grady to whip up a Thin Mint Shamrock, a blend of crème de cacao, creme de menthe, and a wee spot of Baileys. Metro always attracts a big St. Patrick’s Day crowd, so you’ll be in good company for a singalong of “Danny Boy.”
▪????Sydney at Farmhaus makes a delicious Honeysuckle Sour with vodka, honey and lemon. It’s a refreshing glass of Leprechaun gold. Grab some nosh while you’re there to…um…coat your tummy (wink, wink) before your shenanigans carry you into the night.
????Ask Hannah at Vance’s Barkery Bar for the Would Jimmy Buffet Do? Using Scotch, coconut rum, lavender-infused mango juice foam, plum bitters and a tinge o’ Blue Curaçao, she concocts a drink as blue as the legit color of St. Patrick’s robes. (Another fun fact, eh?)
????The Liquid Marijuana at The Loft Augusta twinkles like the Emerald Isle itself. Miranda starts with three types of rum (Bacardi, Captain Morgan, Malibu), then adds Curaçao and pineapple for a drink that will have you reciting limericks.
????If you believe a respectable St. Paddy’s Day cocktail cannot be made without a dram or two of good Irish whiskey, head to Firehouse and ask Nick to make you an Irish Car Bomb. Half a pint of Guinness with a “bomb” of Baileys and Jameson, it’s the unofficially official drink of celebration. It’s a doozy, so check yourself before you wreck yourself.
Have fun, my friends, but be safe. And don’t forget to tell them nakedepicurean sent you. ????
Ann Beth Strelec is known around town as the Naked Epicurean, sampling the finest cocktails known to Augustans. Find out about adult beverages at The Augusta Press on the first and third Friday or on Instagram @NakedEpicurean
