Irish cream is a cream liqueur

Cream liqueur

A cream liqueur is a liqueur that includes dairy cream among its ingredients. Examples include Baileys Irish Cream and Saint Brendan's, which use Irish whiskey; Heather Cream from Scotland using Scotch whisky; Creme de la Creme Maple Cream from Canada using maple syrup and cream; Cruzan Rum Cream...

 based on Irish whiskey

Irish whiskey

Irish whiskey is whiskey made in Ireland.Key regulations defining Irish whiskey and its production are established by the Irish Whiskey Act of 1980, and are relatively simple...

, cream

Cream

Cream is a dairy product that is composed of the higher-butterfat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, over time, the lighter fat rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream this process is accelerated by using centrifuges called "separators"...

, and other ingredients such as coffee

Coffee

Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...

, which can be served on its own or used in mixed drink

Mixed drink

A mixed drink is a beverage in which two or more ingredients are mixed. Some mixed drinks are alcoholic beverages that contain liquor; others are non-alcoholic.-Types:Some popular types of mixed drinks are:...

s or as part of a shot or a whole shot. Irish cream is very popular in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Irish cream typically has between 15 to 20% alcohol by volume

Alcohol by volume

Alcohol by volume is a standard measure of how much alcohol is contained in an alcoholic beverage .The ABV standard is used worldwide....

 (ABV). Some notable brands of Irish cream are Baileys

Baileys Irish Cream

Baileys Irish Cream is an Irish whiskey and cream based liqueur, made by Gilbeys of Ireland. The trademark is currently owned by Diageo. It has a declared alcohol content of 17% alcohol by volume...

, Carolans

Carolans

Carolans Irish Cream is a liqueur based on mead-wine and cream made in Clonmel, South Tipperary in Ireland. It has a declared alcohol content of 17% or 14.5% alcohol by volume . The main components are cream , mead-wine, and honey...

 and Saint Brendan's

Saint Brendan's

Saint Brendan's Irish Cream Liqueur is a proprietary cream liqueur named after Saint Brendan. It is made in Derry, Northern Ireland, using local Irish whiskey and fresh cream....

.

It is usually served on the rocks

Ice cube

Ice cubes are small, roughly cube-shaped pieces of ice, conventionally used to cool beverages. Ice cubes are often preferred over crushed ice because they melt more slowly; they are standard in mixed drinks that call for ice, in which case the drink is said to be "on the rocks."Ice cubes are...

 as a moderately strong beverage on its own, but is often mixed stronger by adding more whiskey, often Scotch whisky or sometimes bourbon, which complements the Irish Whiskey used in brewing. Coffee liqueur such as Kahlúa

Kahlúa

Kahlúa is a Mexican coffee-flavored rum-based liqueur. It is dense and sweet, with the distinct taste of coffee, from which it is made. Kahlúa also contains sugar, corn syrup and vanilla bean.-History:...

 and many caramel liqueurs are also used. Baileys is a common addition to White Russians

White Russian (cocktail)

A White Russian is a sweet cocktail made with vodka, coffee liqueurs , and cream served with ice in an Old Fashioned glass...

, due to its creamy flavor.

Some recipes for Irish cream liqueur have been published, which use various combinations of Irish whiskey, cream, coffee (sometimes, and usually optional), sweetened condensed milk

Condensed milk

Condensed milk, also known as sweetened condensed milk, is cow's milk from which water has been removed and to which sugar has been added, yielding a very thick, sweet product which when canned can last for years without refrigeration if unopened. The two terms, condensed milk and sweetened...

 and evaporated milk

Evaporated milk

Evaporated milk, also known as dehydrated milk, is a shelf-stable canned milk product with about 60% of the water removed from fresh milk. It differs from sweetened condensed milk, which contains added sugar. Sweetened condensed milk requires less processing since the added sugar inhibits ...

. Many have significantly less alcohol by volume than the commercial brands.