PUBlin, Ireland

I took a rather quick trip to Ireland with my wife, Ashlee, and besides a whole lot of Guinness (16 pints if I counted right) I found some pretty good less known Irish beers and microbrews along the way.

The first came while still in the U.S. at the Newark Airport as we awaited our flight to Dublin. I had a Brooklyn IPA 20 oz. draught that was excellent. Brooklyn's a strong contender in the U.S. microbrew market and I have been pleased with their product in the past and they did not disappoint with their IPA.

Of course, no trip to Dublin is complete without a visit to the amazing Guinness Brewery. The story of the Guinness empire is great, the tour was great and the beer is great (sorry, I didn't taste a real difference between a pint in Ireland vs. a pint in the U.S. although it may be a just a hint more watery here, but that may not have anything to do with the brewing process). I highly recommend a visit and a tour and will probably do it again if I get a chance because jet lag kicked in during our tour and I do feel I missed a few things because the place is enormous. It was also cool to visit the brewery during their 250th Anniversary...not that they are making a big deal of it or anything (ha ha).

Also while in Dublin we had a great pub crawl thanks to a little research on the internet by yours truly before our trip. Our first stop was The Bull & Castle - a pub, German-style beer hall and restaurant all rolled into one. They specialize in microbrews including several Irish brands. I started with the Galway Hooker IPA draught. It was extremely good with great body and finish, but not chock full of hops as I was hoping. Although it's named after the famous Irish fishing boats of the port city of Galway, it's always fun to order up "a hooker."

Next I ordered a small O'Hara's Stout draught. This dark and yummy concoction is heavier than Guinness and with less carbonation. It is made my Carlow Brewing and their motto is that O"hara's is the way beer "used to taste in Ireland" - an obvious dig at the worldwide monster that is Guinness.

We moved on to The Brazen Head Pub, one of Dublin's oldest pubs (Est. 1198). A very cool, charming place. Here I ordered a Macardle Ale draught. It was dark red and good to the last drop. Macardle's was an original Irish brewery that I have since discovered was closed in 2001. It was swallowed up by the Guinness empire in the 60's and is still produced by them I suppose.

Next stop, The Porterhouse. This place has no history to speak of. It's a fairly new microbrewery chain actually. However, they are producing some tremendous beer. I started with their Hop Head Ale draught. It was very hoppy as the name promised and I loved it. I deemed it best of the trip up to this point. Next up was the high-alcohol brew, Brain Blasta (photo above). It had a good taste, but my memory seems a little foggy after drinking it.

We finished our crawl at Messrs. Maguire, an excellent three-story pub overlooking the River Liffey. They also brew their own beer and I started with the Rusty Ale draught, their version of a red Irish ale. I had recovered enough from the Brain Blasta to recall that this was a good tasting beer, but nothing to go on and on about. I finished with their Bock which was also had a good taste and body.

During a day trip to the famous Blarney Castle we stopped in the village of Bunratty and I was able to try Kilkenny Smooth Ale (photo below) at the original Durty Nelly's Pub. This was a very rich orange in color ale that I enjoyed very much and would currently rank a close second in my "Best of Ireland" ranking.

On our last full day in Ireland, we went back to The Bull & Castle not only for the beer, but because it was where we had our best meal of the trip as well. I switched to some of their bottled brews on this visit and started with the Chotworthy Dobbin, a dark, bitter from Whitewater Brewing. It was OK and there was plenty of it since it came in a true pint bottle. I turned next to Belfast Ale also from Whitewater Brewing. I enjoyed this dark ale more than the Dobbin and again it came in a huge pint bottle.

My first trip to Dublin was everything I was hoping for in terms of being a tourist and a beer drinker. I hope to return someday and continue being both again.

FOOTNOTE: Back in Nashville: I had an Amarillo Pale Ale draught from Yazoo at La Paz Mexican Restaurant. It was served with a lime. It had a beautiful copper color and good clean taste that complimented the south of the border fare just right.