Blarney Stone

A sophisticated Irish whiskey cocktail featuring subtle anise and orange notes, named after the legendary stone said to bestow the gift of eloquence.

The Blarney Stone Cocktail takes its name from the most famous stone in Ireland — the Blarney Stone set into the battlements of Blarney Castle in the village of Blarney in County Cork, approximately eight kilometers northwest of Cork city. Blarney Castle was built in 1446 by Cormac Láidir MacCarthy, Lord of Muskerry, and the tradition associated with kissing the Blarney Stone — which according to legend grants the gift of eloquence, persuasion, and flattery to those who manage the awkward backwards lean required to reach it — was documented by the 18th century and grew into one of Ireland's most recognized tourist traditions. The word blarney itself entered the English language as a synonym for skilled, flattering, or persuasively deceptive speech — a meaning attributed to Queen Elizabeth I, who grew so frustrated with Cormac Teige MacCarthy's diplomatic evasions when negotiating surrender of the castle that she reportedly declared it all Blarney, what he says he never means. The cocktail honoring this tradition appears in the Mr. Boston Official Bartenders Guide, combining Irish whiskey with anise liqueur and orange curaçao in a formula that reflects the style of vermouth-enriched and liqueur-modified Irish whiskey cocktails that circulated in American bartending guides through the mid-20th century.