Dare your friends (and yourself) to a Cement Mixer Shot—an unsettling combination of Irish cream and lime juice that will turn your mouth into a cement mixer… and possibly turn your stomach, too!
When I’m out with friends and someone wants to have a laugh, they order a round of Cement Mixers. They’re shots comprising Irish cream liqueur and lime juice, and are something of a prank. You see, if you are familiar with the physics of booze (or you passed Grade 9 Science class), you’ll know that the combination of these two ingredients results in a curdled mess. Hence the name ‘Cement Mixer’. After you tip the glass but before you gulp it down, you’re supposed to shake your head and, by doing so, turn it into a cement mixer. The mix inside will feel like cottage cheese on your tongue but without the health benefits!
The shot is completely safe but is not for the faint of stomach! It grew in popularity in the 1990s, which, I feel, says something about the decade’s zeitgeist that drinkers were willingly downing such concoctions and shows like Jackass were just a couple of years away.
It reminds me of a Mudslide or a Bushwacker in that all have a creaminess to them but the Cement Mixer sets itself apart with the ‘gross’ factor. Still, nobody said fun was free, right?
What is the Best Irish Cream to Use?
The default answer to this question is Baileys because it is the most popular and is easily accessible. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t experiment with other types, which may have differing flavor profiles, ingredients, alcohol content, and price points. While Baileys uses Irish whiskey in its liqueur, some others opt for white wine—an option you might find a bit smoother. Others also play around with the flavoring and go beyond the usual notes of chocolate, coffee, and vanilla. How all of this works as part of a Cement Mixer is for you to decide!
Ingredients
- 3/4 ounce Irish cream liqueur (e.g., Baileys)
- 3/4 ounce lime juice
Instructions
- Fill a shot glass halfway with chilled Irish cream liqueur.
- Slowly add the lime juice, pouring it over the back of a spoon.
Nutrition
Tips & Tricks to Making the Perfect Cement Mixer
- Down the shot immediately. If you wait too long, the juice and liqueur will coagulate (like cement!) and make it more difficult to drink.
- To fully appreciate this shot, pour it into your mouth but don’t swallow right away. Instead, shake your head vigorously and become, in effect, a cement mixer!
- Don’t be turned off from the texture of the drink, which will get all clumpy, as though it was made of curds. That’s part of the fun (and won’t make you sick… or at least no more than any other shot!).
- Go for fresh lime juice. Avoid the store-bought stuff, which contains sugar, cornstarch, and whatever else they add to it.
- To layer properly, pour the Irish cream first then add the lime juice slowly. Appearances are vital when making a shot.
FAQs
A typical shot glass will suffice. No need for a garnish.
Don’t “store” a cement mixer. As noted above, the mix of juice and cream will cause it to congeal and turn into sludge (or cement, if you will). So it’s not really the kind of beverage you want to save for a rainy day.
Sure, just combine 2 ounces of Irish cream and 1 ounce of lime juice (along with some ice) in a shaker. Shake vigorously for at least 20 seconds to ensure the ingredients have formed into a smooth formula then pour it into a rocks glass over ice. Garnish with lime.
It has to do with the protein in the cream and the acid in the lime juice. The phenomenon is called “coagulation.”
Similar Shots To the Cement Mixer
Brain Hemorrhage: Another popular shot that features coagulation, and mixes Baileys, peach schnapps, and grenadine.
B-52: This one doesn’t coagulate but does taste similar to the Cement Mixer, thanks to its inclusion of Irish Cream, Kahlua, and Grand Marnier.
Blow Job: A fun one that EVERY guy (and some women) likes to order at the bar. It mixes Kahlua and Baileys and is topped with whipped cream.
Bushwacker Cocktail: I mentioned this one above. While it isn’t a shot, it does feature creams and chocolatey goodness, and will undoubtedly go down more smoothly than a Cement Mixer.
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