Weekend in Limerick.

So since my last update i've gathered some swag from Drinkstore, got some 8 Degrees Amber Ella one of the stars of the recent Irish Craft Beer & Cider Fest. Also picked up a few others including a bottle of whiskey barrel aged Leann Follain by O'Haras that i'm going to keep by for Christmas.

Anyway the main point of this post is to share what went down in Limerick this past weekend.

So after work on Friday drove down to Limerick and thanks to the motorway network made it in a very reasonable time once we got past the accident in Naas.

Our lodgings for the weekend were The Pier Hotel on Sarsfield Bridge. Easy to find and very centrally located. A very keen price and as it turned out was very good value for money. The rooms were clean, and the Breakfast was great. The real stand out thing was the fact breakfast was on til 12! That is a first for me, but it was a very tasty breakfast and the staff were really helpful.

The first night giving we got down around 830 we were famished and went to Bella Italia, an Italian Restaurant - we just went with main courses. It was on Thomas St a short hop from the hotel. Sadly the food wasn't as great as we hoped, but filled a hole none the less. Though the pint of Peroni for €4.95 was a great thirst quencher. Once we were done there we retired back to the hotel bar for a couple of drinks. Sadly no craft beer there so had to slum it.

What an amazing view

The next day we were blessed with the weather for our trip out to the magnificent Cliffs of Moher. Only an hour or so from Limerick. Amazing scenery and one of our best tourist attractions. There was a healthy crowd there. On our way back from the Cliffs we stopped in Lahinch in a local pub called Danny Macs. We had a clam chowder with a pint, well not me as I was driving had to make do with water! :( this would be remedied later on. 

Once we got back to Limerick we dumped the car and went off to watch the 2nd half of the United match (now i wish i hadn't bothered) we picked Smiths as a place to watch it due to their large amount of screens. Happily they'd Pilsner Urquell available on draught, and it was only lovely. I also loved the tankard style pint glasses 

Lovely Retro Style Tankard

So after here - i'd had enough - we decided to move on to another pub.Luckily we didn't have far to go. The Crafty Fox was a mere stones throw down the street. I'd heard good things, and was very keen to try it out. Also there was plenty of screens to watch the All Ireland Hurling Final Replay, which was sensational. 

The Bar in the Crafty Fox - Well Stocked.

The beer menu for a limerick bar was very good, a lot of irish craft present on the taps, O'Haras and Franciscan Well having a couple of taps each, was also nice to see 8 Degrees Howling Gale, and Metalman. Importantly all very well priced. Again there was a nice choice of bottles but it was the taps that we supped from. I'd a Metalman and Dark Arts,both fantastic as always. Mrs Irishbeersnob was supping the Rebel Red. We'd a couple there and watched the amazing climax of the hurling and went off to dinner.

Chocolat in Limerick was recommended to us by our friend. What really sealed the deal was their 4 course meal for €25. On a saturday night. Mad value for money. This is what the 9% Vat rate gets us. Unbelievable value for money. The restaurant was very swanky, down stairs in the main dining room you were treated to a really modern restaurant. The music in the backround was more akin to a night club however. That was the only quibble. The food was fantastic. I went with the BBQ Rib to start, and the Sirloin Steak main, for dessert a Ferrero Rocher cheesecake. All three courses were really impressive. There was also NO supplemant for having steak. Mrs Beersnob had Clonakilty Blackpudding cake, with the BBQ Ribs as a main. I'd a Worthingtons White Knight and herself a blue moon. Obviously their beer was supplied by Molson Coors. Not the absolute worst. But was a bit disappointing not to see Irish craft there.

Then for the finale of the night we made our way to the Blind Pig.I saw on twitter earlier in the day they'd been tapped up by White Gypsy for their Ruby - an ale i'd never had before. But how hadn't I, it was sensational. Had a nice few pints of this. To mix it up i'd a Fischers later but there was something up with the keg as it tasted off, the guys were happy to swap it out and i'd an Asahi instead. The staff were really friendly. There was a metal/rock Dj on as the metal bar downstairs wasn't open. All in all, was very very impressed. 

The Beoirfinder App suggested a few other pubs had Irish Craft - sadly we ran out of time - but will be back in the future to check out the rest of the scene in Limerick.

Upcoming Plans

Sorry i've not posted in a little while been all quiet on the western front but there are a few things coming up over the next few weeks which i'll be looking forward to sharing with you as soon as I can.

Not much in the way of beers etc being tried, but have been thinking about Christmas and what to do then. So any ideas from anyone out there have any suggestions for Christmas ales. One being given serious consideration at the moment is a nice chocolate stout float as part of the Christmas dinner. 

So had a work lunch in Red Torch Ginger today - 2 course lunch including home made lemonade, iced tea, or water for €14.95 those who've read my previous reviews will know that I rate the food very highly. I went for the combo starter which was a spring roll, wanton, chicken satay and marvelous rib. For main course went with a delish Duck with Basil and Chilli stir fry with egg noodles. Also great to see that they are offering a range of craft beers. Some great beers on the list. Look forward to getting back and sampling with a meal next time guys.

Coming up, we've a wedding in the Shelbourne, a trip to Limerick, and i'm really looking forward to that, really looking forward to checking out the craft beer scene in Limerick.

Payday this weekend and expect a haul from Drinkstore or Sweeneys perhaps. However with my Beoir membership now getting me 10% off Irish Craft Beer at Drinkstore, thats looking like a winner.

Also hoping to check out the Honest to Goodness Market on Saturday Morning.

So i've not been in hibernation, just planning! 

The Irish Craft Beer & Cider Festival 2013 - Thoughts Part 2

Pictures courtesy of @mountainmancork

Ok, so I've got a few more to tell you about

I am going to start with the lads from Mountain Man Brewing from West Cork, it was great to be able to chat to Phil on the Thursday when it was relatively quiet. Lovely guy, but what really impressed me is the branding - its really out there. They came to the fest with the Green Bullet, and the new Hairy Goat IPA. I was really keen to try the Hairy Goat, and it was delicious. The pictures are above, they used an Antler for a beer handle! And also a picture of the manic crowd from Saturday.

Also there were Dungarvan Brewing with a casked version of their lovely Black Rock Stout with oak chips. Needless to say it was spectacular. Along with a number of other festival specials, I also was very impressed with the session DIPA, hopped powerfully with a very sessionable 3.9% ABV. Yet another good showing from the team.

I was also happy to see my favourite cider there, Stonewell from Kinsale, it was also great to meet Daniel and chat with him. Hot off winning 3 Star Awards from at the Great Taste awards. Congratulations again, well deserved. It was also an opportunity to try it on Draft. It was one very refreshing pint of cider and was very impressed. Not much notable difference from the bottles. 

O'Haras, were one of the organisers of the event, however i've had a lot of their products, and was trying to try things i've never had before, their barley wine was impressive and potent, but I preferred Porterhouse Louder. Early on Saturday I had a pint of their Helles Lager and i've had it before, but it was the perfect quencher. Though not my favourite lager of the festival. I was however also very impressed though with "Belgian Connection" which was a collaboration with JW Sweetmans. 

Its always going to be difficult to try everything - and also very damaging to your liver and wallet if you even tried. But I was more than happy with what I got to try. But more importantly it was great to meet the fantastic people behind the products. They were all more than willing to chat to you.

There were a few minor quibbles with the event itself, but not enough to stop me wanting to go back. I'll probably cover these off on a later post, but I would be interested to hear any visitors thoughts 

The Irish Craft Beer & Cider Festival 2013 - Thoughts Pt 1

Its back, bigger and better than before. And this time its personal! Sorry I was getting a little carried away there. The 2013 Irish Craft Beer & Cider Festival has come to a close today. Its a little early to know what the final numbers and impressions were, I can only convey my own thoughts. 

It was my first visit, in each of the last couple of years i've not been around for one reason or another. This year was the biggest incarnation yet, reflecting the exceptional levels of growth seen in the Craft Beer & Cider industry in Ireland over the last 18 to 24 months.

So here's the vital statistics. Over 100 different beers and ciders from and over 20 breweries represented this year this was undoubtedly the biggest event yet. Among the brewers there were some new additions who were to be welcomed. The distilling world were also represented by Dingle Distillery and Teelings.

As a fully fledged member of beoir I was able to see this event from behind the ropes so to speak as I was volunteering for 2 of the days. The thursday evening and Saturday. But there was plenty of time to wander around and take everything in.

In the industry's hall at the RDS you have ample space for the brewers, and plenty of room to lounge around. A convenient location serviced well by public transport.

Now onto the beers, sadly i didn't get many pictures, but there were some sensational beers on offer this weekend. A lot of festival specials. There were the usual brews, and collaborations. You had O'Haras and JW Sweetman with Belgian Connection, Trouble Brewing & Galway Hooker with Troubled Hooker. Fantastic choices available and it would be nearly impossible to try all of them. So which ones stood out for me. 

In no order of preference, The Kinsale Pale Ale through the randal was a truly unique way to enjoy and already well hopped pale ale, I sampled it with the Citra hops, and to be honest it was very nice. But, I just preferred the overall balance of the regular. Sam is a really friendly guy and it was great to be able to chat to him about his brewery which he is opening shortly in Kinsale. It's also great to be involved with the Beoir fundraising where some time in the new year Sam is going to host up to 40 people for a special batch brew. At the time of writing his indiegogo funding stands at €4455 (Kinsale Craft Brewery Indiegogo Page) with 7 days left - if you can spare a fiver - give it a go. 

The lads from 8 Degrees, also had a new one for us, Amberella, and american style amber beer. This is coming to us soon - but it was great to get a sample of this at the festival. Yet again the guys have delivered a lovely beer - very quaffable with great flavours. Fresh on the back of the Hopoff between Cyclone and Hurricane the guys are on a roll. Clearly they are not resting on their laurels and continue to innovate and bring us more to their already very solid range.

Looking locally, being from Meath it was great to meet the lads behind Bru Brewery(@brubrewery), having launched last week at the Fairways in Dundalk, and being tapped in a local pub in Navan (@Thecentralnavan) on the Wednesday evening before the festival began. Bringing with them to the festival they had Rua (Red Ale) a Stout, and two lagers, Lager X and Lager Y. I must say the Rua was fantastic, nitroed head so very creamy, but full of flavour. The stout was also very good. Being very aware of their target market in local pubs in Meath initially, they had two lagers. In my opinion Lager X was better, and if that and the stout and red ale were tapped in my local, i'd drink my weight in them. The reaction to them was great, always a lot of people around, and I must say the branding is particularly impressive. I wasn't the only one who commented on that. The initial reaction in The Central has obviously been impressive as the keg sold out within 24 hours. Well done lads.

I realise this is quite a long blog post - so i'm gonna leave it there for now and post further thoughts over the next day or two.