Bertie Ahern rarely touches the stuff. It gives Marian Finucane a thumping headache. Even Adi Roche has cut down on it in the run-up to the presidential election. But despite their protestations, they and thousands more were lifting their mugs and paying well over the odds for a brew on Thursday in aid of the Irish Hospice Foundation.
Tanaiste Mary Harney's coffee morning in Fitzers Restaurant in the National Gallery was probably the most expensive of the 5000 Hospice events held nationwide. It raised £3,200 for the cause - from 300 guests. Marian Finucane sipped tea - she is allergic to coffee - as she chatted to journalist Nell McCafferty and Hospice chairwoman Marie Donnelly. The broadcaster was once a beneficiary of hospice home-care and describes it as "a civilised approach to an awful situation". Also spotted enjoying the croissants and coffee were Olive Braiden, Ali Hewson, Proinsias De Rossa, Bill Hughes, Conor Lenihan and Shay Healy.
In the Commons Restaurant on St Stephen's Green, a function filled with well-known faces was getting underway. Eamon Dunphy popped his head in for a quick brew, as did former justice Minister Nora Owen. Back at the National Gallery, presidential candidates Mary Banotti and Adi Roche forgot their rivalry for the sake of a good cause as they stood exchanging pleasantries.