Category: 2016

2016, Beer & Food, beer bloggers, Burgers, Dublin

Bunsen 

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Bunsen 

I know I’m a little late to the Bunsen party, but I just have to tell you all about it. It was a Friday after payday and I didn’t bring my usual healthy, home prepared salad. Neither did Wayne. So on our commute to work we decided to meet for lunch (working south side has its advantages). We arranged to meet at 12 to beat the lunch time rush. With being spoiled for really amazing eateries around Grafton St we chose Bunsen on South Anne Street.

These guys are very well known for their burgers. I’m actually really surprised we haven’t been to one of their restaurants before. I knew they were situated on Wexford St, opposite Against The Grain and in Temple Bar but never knew there was a third location.

So lunch time arrived and we walked the short distance from my workplace. With seating available outside and upstairs we chose a seat inside and decided what to eat. I love the simplicity of the menu being a business card and noticed they even cater for gluten free/paleo.

The beer snob in me glanced at the alcoholic beverages available. Nice to see some great offerings from some Irish craft beer breweries as well as a selection of wine. My choice would have been the IPA from Wicklow Wolf.  Wishing I wasn’t working I ordered a strawberry milkshake while Wayne went for the chocolate flavoured one. These were amazing.

Next out came our food. My choice was the cheeseburger cooked medium well with all the toppings while Wayne  chose the double cheesburger cooked medium. We ordered shoestring fries to share. After the obigatory picture taking we tucked in. There wasn’t a word uttered between us. The burgers are indeed delicious. Served on a gorgeous soft bun, the patty itself was so juicy.  We devoured them.

There was a really lovely atmosphere and the staff, although very busy, were so friendly. The place filled up quite quickly and I was thrilled we decided to beat the lunch time rush. After paying our bill and rolling ourselves out I noticed a small queue for seats forming.  I also realised some customers were collecting phone orders. Working so close to this place is going to be dangerous to my waistline.

2016, Irish Beer Snob Podcast, Irish Craft Beer, Lidl, Pale Ale, podcast, Red Ale, Rye River Brewery

IBSC EP0026 – Crafty Brewing Company

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IBSC EP0026 – Crafty Brewing Company

In this latest episode we try The Crafty Brewing Company’s Red ale, and Irish Pale Ale, that are available nationwide in Lidl – Find your local store

We also look at upcoming events and recent beers we’ve tasted

1: Galway Hooker Brewery 10th Birthday Event – 57 The Headline Event Page

2: DOT Brew – Keg Launch – 57 The Headline Event Page

3: White Hag Turn 2 – Eventbrite Ticket Page

We also see the return of Wayne’s Emoji Rating system

As always, thanks for listening and your comments were great on this episodes #Hopical feature.

 

Please like and review on iTunes, Stitcher.

Direct MP3 link is here

As always, thanks for listening.

2016, Beer Review, Beoir, IPA, Irish Craft Beer

Summer’s Here courtesy of 8 Degrees

by irishbeersnobLeave a Comment on Summer’s Here courtesy of 8 Degrees
Summer’s Here courtesy of 8 Degrees

I was looking back over the site and realised, it’s been a while since I last actually wrote anything that resembled a beer review. It’s all been podcast episodes. Well, i’m going to correct all that.

Everyone that knows me, knows i’m a hop head. I love me some great IPAs, and i’m always seeking out the next face melter, or juicy banger. Thankfully, in Ireland, we’re lucky to have those lads down in 8 Degrees in Cork. They have regularly released some of my favourite Irish made IPAs, so I was delighted to have a pint of Hurricane in Drury Buildings last week.

They have been releasing special Single Hop IPAs, which included a Citra one (which i loved as I love Citra), and in this review i’m going to taste the Mandarina Bavaria one.



Single Hop IPA Series: Mandarina Bavaria

ABV: 5.7%
Hops: Mandarina Bavaria
Appearance: A lovely amber / orange hue with a mousse like white head.
Aroma: Mandarina Bavaria is a new German hop which imparts an amazing mandrina orange aroma into the beer.  There are also notes of other tropical fruit and citrus on the nose also.
Flavour: A very pleasing taste, nice juicy sweet citrus. The sweetness of the malt carries a pleasing bitterness into the finish.

I really enjoyed this beer, even though i’ve always been a little wary of Single Hop beers, as sometimes they can lack balance. But, with skilled hands they can be really enjoyable, and the team at 8D have managed to make a beer thats very quaffable, and very enjoyable. Seek this one out.

Summer Days Seisún IPA

ABV: 4.5%
Hops: Amarillo, Mandarina Bavaria, Equinox, and Citra.
Appearance: Pours a pale yellow, with slight haze, and compact white head.
Aroma: Lovely tropical nose, mango, and pineapple. Slight biscuity malt aroma.
Flavour: Nice level of carbonation, makes this smooth and easy to sup. Soft bitterness mixed with citrus fruits leads to a slightly dry finish. The combo brings you back for another mouthful.

Like Grand Stretch before it, 8D have again produced a rock solid Session IPA. Even though it’s 4.5% I found the body a little too thin, considering some other beers at that strength carry a bit more. But, it fits the purpose of Lawnmower Beer category, light, flavoursome, and something you could pack a few away with your faculties still in tact.

Cheers 🍻
Wayne

2016, Arrogant Bastard, Baggot Street Wines, Cans, Craft Beer, Four Corners, IPA, Ireland, Stone Berlin, Stone Brewing, West Coast

Stone Brewing Europe has arrived #DrinkFresh

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Stone Brewing Europe has arrived #DrinkFresh

In this latest episode the team have a taste of mega fresh beers from Stone Brewing Berlin that have just launched in to the Irish Market.

They also catch up on the latest news from Ireland and beyond.

The video of Joseph Kearns (Head Brewer at White Hag) can be found here where he talks cans vs bottles from his perspective as a brewer.

Please don’t forget to rate and review on itunes, and all feedback / comments are welcome. 

You can find a direct link to the episode here

You can get us on @IrishBeerSnob and @Mrsbeersnob on Twitter, and you can find us on Facebook too https://www.facebook.com/irishbeersnob/

Cheers.

2016, American Wheat IPA, Collaboration, O Briens Off License, O Brother Brewing, Who What Wheat Where

When Brewers and Off Licences collide

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When Brewers and Off Licences collide


Who What Wheat Where is the result of a collaboration brew between O Brother Brewing and O Briens  off license. This is a limited release american wheat IPA that is dry hopped with Ahtanum, Centennial, Cascade, Columbus, Simcoe and Chinook. The guys in O Briens kindly sent us two bottles to sample. The name was decided by a twitter and Facebook competition, sadly my entry ‘Bob’ didn’t win.

Being a massive fan of O brother I was excited to try this. On opening of the first bottle I noticed some yeast sediment. I poured the beer gently into a glass. I’ll admit I didn’t find it visually appealing. As it’s a wheat beer I was expecting the usual cloudiness but this was quite murky. The aroma was rather mild and on taste I found it quiet astringent and left a strange after taste. There was also a big yeasty bite to it that I didn’t enjoy.


Thinking this was unusual for this brewery I popped open the second bottle. The aroma was much more hop forward and pleasant. After expecting it to taste as the first bottle did I was pleasantly surprised it didn’t. The citrus flavours left a slightly bitter aftertaste. A lot more appealing this time. There’s quite a dry finish to it making you want to go back for more. 

This is available exclusively in O Briens stores and on line. So get a bottle and try it for yourself. 

Sláinte Mrs Beersnob 




 
 
 
 
 
2016, Beoir, Champion Beer of Ireland, Chili, Killarney Beerfest, Melissa Cole, Mild, podcast, Porter, The Shire Pub, Yellowbelly

IBSC EP0024 – Yellowbelly Fierce Mild & The Wexican

by irishbeersnobLeave a Comment on IBSC EP0024 – Yellowbelly Fierce Mild & The Wexican
IBSC EP0024 – Yellowbelly Fierce Mild & The Wexican
In this latest episode from the Irish Beer Snob team our intrepid duo look back on the recent Killarney Beerfest which took place the weekend of 27th to 29th of May in beautiful sunny Killarney, in South West Ireland.
It also included the Beoir (www.beoir.org) Champion Beer of Ireland Awards. A full list of the winners in each catergory can be found here
While reviewing the latest news and updates from the Irish Beer Scene, we also sample the aforementioned beers from Yellowbelly from Wexford, in the South East of Ireland.
You can find more info on the brewery on their website here
We also had the opportunity to sit down and Interview, world renowned Beer Writer, Melissa Cole, you can find out more about Melissa on her website http://www.letmetellyouaboutbeer.co.uk/ and on her social media; Twitter is @MelissaCole, Facebook is MelissaColeBeer

Thanks for listening.

Direct link is available here and you can find us on iTunes.