A layered after-dinner shot of equal parts coffee liqueur, Irish cream, and orange liqueur, built so the three settle into distinct stripes by density — dark to pale to amber. Sweet, creamy, and warming, it reads more dessert than drink. The B-52 is credited to bartender Peter Fich at Alberta's Banff Springs Hotel in 1977, who named it for the new-wave band rather than the bomber; a competing claim places its origin at Maxwell's Plum in New York.
built · Shot glass · None
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Pour the coffee liqueur into a shot glass as the bottom layer.
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Float the Irish cream slowly over the back of a cold bar spoon so it rests as a distinct middle layer without disturbing the coffee liqueur.
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Float the orange liqueur (Grand Marnier or triple sec) over the back of the spoon to form the top layer; the three layers separate by density. Serve straight up, no ice.