A refreshing Guinness float recipe made with Guinness beer and ice cream then topped with whipped cream and chocolate syrup. Incredibly delicious!
Who says ice cream floats are only for kids? Not at all! In fact this boozy Guinness float is a real treat and although we're sharing our Guinness float recipe just in time for St. Patrick's Day, it's a drink to enjoy anytime.
Why This Recipe Works
Root beer might be the traditional choice for a float, but a beer and ice cream combination is actually a delightful one. A beer like Guinness, with its rich, coffee flavored undertones pairs very well with chocolate or vanilla ice cream.
One of my favorite places in the world is Ireland and I've been there three times. Most recently, my husband and I traveled there with our two daughters and had such an incredible time. One of the highlights of our trip was visiting the Guinness brewery and storehouse in Dublin and taking the famous Guinness tour to learn about the history of this iconic beer.
Guinness is one of the most successful beer brands in the world. The dark Irish stout originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James Gate in Dublin, Ireland in 1759. He had such confidence in the success of his beer that he signed a 9,000 year lease on the property where he started his brewery.
Since my first trip to Ireland, I've enjoyed more than a few of these smooth dark beers and decided to combine it with vanilla ice cream to make a delightful Guinness float.
Ingredient Notes
See recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.
- Ice Cream: My favorite ice cream to use in this recipe is vanilla. You can also use chocolate, caramel, or coffee ice cream instead.
- Guinness Stout: It wouldn't be called a Guinness Ice Cream Float without a Guinness. Use any variety of Guinness you like. I like using Extra Stout.
- Whipped cream and chocolate syrup: For topping.
How To Make This Recipe
- First, place a couple of scoops of ice cream into a tall glass.
- Drizzle a little bit of chocolate syrup over the ice cream.
- Then, slowly pour in the Guinness and watch it foam. Wait for the foam to go down and then add a little more to the glass.
- Finally, top it off with whipped cream and a hefty drizzle of chocolate syrup.
Frequently Asked Questions
Guinness is a rich black beer that is slightly sweet and slightly bitter with notes of coffee and chocolate. It's smooth and velvety in texture and surprisingly contains less alcohol than a typical draught.
If you have a larger container of beer that you'd like to use for this float recipe, you might like to use the rest to make a small loaf of beer bread or an Irish Stew.
Expert Tips
- This recipe doubles well. If you'd like to make 2 Guinness floats, just double the ingredients.
- Feel free to add a splash or two of Bailey's Irish cream to your Guinness ice cream float.
Other Single Serving and Small Batch Irish Recipes
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Guinness Float
Equipment
- Tall glass
- Ice cream scoop
Ingredients
- 2 large scoops vanilla ice cream
- 1 12 ounce bottle Guinness
- ¼ cup whipped cream
- 1 tablespoon chocolate syrup , divided
Instructions
- Place ice cream in a tall glass.
- Pour ½ tablespoon of chocolate syrup over the ice cream.
- Slowly pour the Guinness into the glass. Stop and let the foam subside then pour in the rest of the beer.
- Top with whipped cream and remaining chocolate syrup and feel free to add a little more to suit your tastes.
Notes
- This recipe doubles well. If you'd like to make 2 Guinness floats, just double the ingredients.
- Feel free to add a splash or two of Bailey's Irish cream to your Guinness ice cream float.
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Bob says
Best dessert ever!!
Janet Fazio says
OMG. It's the grown-up version of a root beer float. I can't wait to try one.