Green beer. “Kiss me, I’m Irish” T-shirts. Four-leaf clover sunglasses: Americans sure do love being one tenth Irish. If you want to drink to forget about that leprechaun tattoo, you can always try to do it slightly more authentically this year. Here’s how to drink like you’re half Irish with a Portland edge.

Whiskey
Whiskey is an obvious necessity for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day. Try making this cocktail using Temperance Trader Barrel Strength Bourbon, conceived in Bourbon Country and finished in Portland by Bull Run Distilling Co. Co-founder Patrick Bernards offers this recipe:

Black Irish Rose
1.5 oz Temperance Trader Barrel Strength Bourbon
2 oz Guinness Stout
1/4 oz Campari
1/4 oz Lemon Juice
1/4 oz Simple Syrup
1 dash Peychaud's Bitters
Build in shaker with ice, shake and strain into rocks glass. Garnish with a black cherry.

Cider
While the popular Irish Bulmer's Cider may not be readily available in Portland, we’ve got our own pot of gold when it comes to local hard cider. Skip on over to Bushwhacker Cider for a house cider like the Mountain Rose 2013 available in 750ml bottles or on draft. In addition to house ciders, Bushwhacker has one of the most impressive bottle lists of cider from Oregon, Normandy, and everywhere in between (1212-D SE Powell Blvd.; 503-445-0577).

Mead
Mead is created by fermenting honey with water, along with fruits, spices, grains or hops. The Irish drink it and you should too. Bushwhacker Cider, mentioned above, has a solid selection of bottled mead but for “mead central,” look no further than Mead Market (inside Bee Thinking, located right off Hawthorne Blvd.) Here you can find canned sparkling mead (Blue Dog Mead Green Collar), Dansk Mjod Viking Blod Mead, and even supplies and mead making classes (1551 SE Poplar Ave.; 877-325-2221).

Irish Coffee
The Irish Coffee from Paddy’s Irish Pub is made from Jameson, sugar cubes, coffee, and Bailey’s whipped cream, just the way it should be. Stop in and get this classic of the menu as a pre-St. Patrick Day cocktail and then stop back for the Paddy’s 2014 St. Patrick Day Festival, which runs from March 14-17, and will entail four days of bagpipers, corned beef and cabbage and marathon runners (65 SW Yamhill St.; 503-224-5626).

Everyone's favorite Northwest brunch spot, Besaw's, will be serving up its own variant of the Irish Coffee. This one is called Irish Twins and is made with Baileys Irish Cream, 2 Gingers Irish whiskey and Water Avenue coffee, then topped with whipped cream (2301 NW Savier St.; 503-228-2619).

Anyone have any tips on where to get some Poitin?

Photo: Paddy's Irish Pub