A Quart of Ale± #130. On the craft journey with Third Barrel, Bradleys, Sullivan's, Wicklow Wolf, O'Shea's, Aldi, Bullhouse, Whiplash, Crew, Kinnegar,

 

A Quart of Ale± #130

On the craft journey with Third Barrel, Bradleys, Sullivan's, Wicklow Wolf, O'Shea's, Aldi, O'Briens, Bullhouse

Third Barrel Day Drinkin 111 Revenge of the Hops Session IPA, 4% ABV, 440 ml can Bradleys

Third Barrel are busy these days: “The UK are going through Prime Ministers like we go through beer specials..”

Like their previous two Day Drinkin beers, this Revenge of the Hops weighs in at just four per cent, and is aimed at the session drinker though I’m sure quite a few other beer drinkers would enjoy it.

It has a pale orange colour and it’s murky in there. The label “forecasts” aromas of grapefruit, raspberry and sweet candy. Grapefruit yes but I’ve found the others elusive! It is pretty big and bold in the mouth where the grapefruit also leads the refreshing charge along with peach and banana.

A duo of hops boot this on. One is HBC 630, an experimental hop from the Yakima Valley. It is recommended for Wheat Ale, Golden Ale, American style lagers, Pale Ales, India Pale Lager (IPL), India Pale Ale (IPA), Session IPA, New England IPA, Hazy IPA, Imperial IPA. The other hop listed is the well-known Mosaic, a contributor to the tropical notes. 

The carbon produced in the making of this beer has been offset by planting native Irish trees.

Our reviews on the other Day Drinkin beers

Part Deux Citra Strata Session IPA 

Third Barrel Day Drinkin Simcoe Session IPA  

Sullivan’s Black Marble Stout, 5.1%, 500ml bottle O’Brien Wines

Enjoy the true taste of traditional bottled Irish stout. Brewed with roast barley, chocolate and wheat malts, and choicest hops. A generous stout with extra depth of flavour.

That is the encouragement on the bottle’s label, so let's have a taste… Black as Kilkenny marble for sure and with a soft floppy tan head that sinks rather slowly. Light coffee aromas and fruity notes also rise from the glass. And they get to tango on the palate, a melange of dancing flavours and sharp acidity waking up the taste buds, and keeping the show going, generously throwing in an encore or two at the finale. If the O’Shea’s (below) is mid-table, this neighbouring stout is championship material.

The hops used are Admiral, Magnum, Goldings and Sullivan’s say it is delicious with roasts and cheese dishes.

Did you know that Sullivan’s were brewing in Kilkenny before Smithwick’s? And then the two got intertwined?

Here’s the timeline, from the O’Sullivan website:

1702 Sullivan’s Brewing Company is established, and grows to be biggest in the area 

1827 The Smithwick name is launched as a beer brand in Kilkenny

1918 Smithwick’s acquires the Sullivan’s brewing brand after it is forced to close

1965 Guinness (now Diageo) takes control of Smithwick’s, buying the family interest 

2014 Diageo relocates Smithwick’s to Dublin, marking the first time in 800 years that Kilkenny is without a commercial brewery 

2016 Smithwick family relaunches the Sullivan’s brand in Kilkenny; brewery launches its North American market entry via Buffalo, NY.

See October review on Sullivan’s “Maltings” Irish Ale here.   

Wicklow Wolf Sirius Black IPA, 6.0%, 440 ml can Bradleys

Not too sure if the Sirius of the name refers to Sirius the brightest star in the night sky or to Sirius Black a character in Harry Potter. Probably not after the famous steamship Sirius, well-known in Cork in the 19th century and the first of its kind to cross the Atlantic.

In any case, the beer is black, black as night, with a tan head.  Aromas are quiet, just some faint floral and even fainter spice notes coming through. It is much more assertive in the mouth though,  with a backbone of milk chocolate, coffee and roast malt flavours. There’s a posse of malts in this one. 

No shortage of hops either with no less than four, all from the USA, employed combining to give flavours of passion fruit, subtle orange and an earthy resinous bitterness. One to make those taste buds sit up and take notice.

They say: “A magical Black IPA, Sirius was brewed with a robust malt bill to provide strong depth of flavour and colour to the beer. This robust malt bill gives the beer a dark opaque appearance… .Sirius is a West Coast style Black IPA that was double dry hopped with a massive amount of Amarillo, Simcoe and Strata hops.”

"The endangered species brews are a series of small batch, limited edition crafted beers. These beers are so rare that only a lucky few will get to experience them in the wild before they become extinct." This is #34

Geek Bits:

Hops - Bravo, Simcoe, Amarillo, Strata

Malts - Pale Malt, Carafa Special Type 1, Carafa Special Type 3, Caramalt, Dark Malt, T50

O’Shea’s Cold Dark Stout, 4.5%, 500ml bottle Aldi

Seldom easy to find detailed info on supermarket beers and this is no exception. But you’ll read this line on the neck: Traditional Dry Irish Stout bursting with flavours of coffee and chocolate.

Okay. Pours out into the glass as black as midnight with a tan head (short-lived). That coffee and chocolate seep out of the glass and there’s a toasty note as well.

While named O’Shea’s, it is made by Carlow Brewing who also make O’Hara's beers (including some really excellent stouts). It could be a bit more full-bodied, more robust, on the palate and it continues to a reasonably dry if shortish finish.  That coffee/chocolate duet persists to the end but it needs a bit more to shift it out of mid-table.

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Whiplash: Few Riddlers, be grand. After a brief hiatus on the webshop, Body Riddle is freshly canned and ready to go! Grab it in a Big Huge Slab or in a 6-pack Mixtape with other styles. Scroll on to see more  New to Body Riddle? It's our interpretation of an American Pale Ale, weighing in at 4.5% and in a 330ml can, it's perfect for suppin'. It has a really bright hop bill with loads of Lemondrop, Galaxy, Simcoe, and Ekuanot leaving us with notes of passionfruit, lemon rind, grapefruit juice and some piney goodness.

Shop Body Riddle

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Bullhouse Brew Co : Modest Beer & Cheese Night

Beer and Cheese at Bullhouse East. Join us on Tuesday 8th November for an intimate beer and cheese pairing with Chris Morris, owner and head brewer of Modest Beer. These intimate tastings are limited to 20 tickets per tasting and include a guided talk on 5 different beers paired with 5 excellent local cheeses. The event kicks off sharply at 7:30pm and we ask you to be there for 7pm.

BUY TICKET

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Crew's Irish Night...

Irish Night in Limerick
Every Thursday, 8PM

Irish Night happens every Thursday from 8PM. It’s a great chance to use your cúpla focail in a supportive environment. Any level of the Irish language is welcome, from total beginners to fluent speakers. It's been said that it's easier the more pints you've had!

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Kinnegar New Beers Alert

There are no fewer than five new beers jostling for position in the release queue. First to burst out of the holding pen was our 2022 Barleywine which will appear in just a few weeks wearing its smart BAP28 uniform. Not yet packaged but next in line for canning and first in line for release is BAP27, a Black Lager that Rick was curious to try as part of our Brewers at Play series. This is the first of our lagers to go over to the dark side so we’re pretty excited about tasting it in its finished form. And there's more to follow...

Beer of the Year. My favourites so far.

Beer of the Year 2022

Rye River

My nine favourites to date.

Wicklow Wolf are having a great year, at least in my neck (of the woods). As you can see below, they feature at the top in four of the nine months so far (December '21 is counted). Whiplash have two number ones.  And that points up the fact that the more productive breweries are more likely to get the nod than those who have a great core range but who, for whatever reason (and I'm sure they have good ones), don't go in as much for seasonals and specials. I'll have started to try and balance that! Any ideas? Anyone! 

Confirmed to date

August:12 Acres Pale Ale

July: Wicklow Wolf Locavore Summer 2022 Foraged Elderflower Saison

June: Wicklow Wolf Mescan Wit or Without You Belgian Wit

May: Wicklow Wolf Locavore Spring 2022 Barrel Aged Farmhouse Ale

April: Whiplash True Love Waits Dry Hopped Pils

March: Lineman Schadenfreude Schwarzbier

February: Wicklow Wolf  “Apex Cherry” Black Cherry Oatmeal Stout.

January: Whiplash Dry the Rain Double Decoction Dunkel

December: Lough Gill Mac Nutty Macadamia Nut

Best of August Short List

Pale Ale: 12 Acres Pale Ale

Aged Stout: Porterhouse Slvr Skin Barrel Aged Coffee Stout 13% ABV. 

Brown Ale: Lineman Big Calm 

Single Hop IPA: 8 Degrees Citra 

Oatmeal IPA: Galway Bay Goodbye Blue Monday

Kolsch: Rye River (collab.with Old Street) Die Hundstage Köter Kölsch

Belgian Stout: Wide Street Monksland 

Hopfenweisse: Wicklow Wolf Jeff Bezos

Cider: Cockagee Irish Keeved Cider 5% Simply outstanding

Pints in Bars:

The Maritime, Bantry: 9 White Deer Kölsch

The Lake, Killarney: Ale and Lager by Killarney Brewing Co.

Merry’s, Dungarvan: Wicklow Wolf Ale

The Shelbourne, Cork: Beamish

The Cotton Ball, Cork: Lynch’s Stout, Indian Summer

Mellet’s Emporium, Swinford: Reel Deel Jack the Lad, Mescan Seven Virtues Lager.

Keenan’s, Tarmonbarry, Co. Roscommon: White Hag Little Fawn; Kinnegar’s Scraggy Bay

Finín’s Midleton: Black’s KPA

Franciscan Well: Original 7 Weisse

Elbow Lane: Angel Stout

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A Quart of Ale± #115. On the craft journey with Wicklow Wolf, Whiplash, Lough Gill, O Brother and Kinnegar.

 A Quart of Ale± #115

On the craft journey with Wicklow Wolf, Whiplash, Lough Gill and O Brother.

Wicklow Wolf Locavore Summer 2022 Foraged Elderflower Saison 6.5%, 440 ml can Bradleys

In introducing Locavore Summer 2022, Wicklow Wolf tell us it is a Foraged Elderflower Saison brewed with elderflower foraged right on the hop farm and our very own malted barley and wheat.

There is a slight and short-lived white head and the colour is a clear amber/gold. The Elderflower is immediately noticeable in the aromatics with herbal and floral notes, and hints of resin in the background. Quite a current of tropical fruit and orange comes through on the palate of this light and crisp beer, deeply refreshing and with a lip smacking finish. Pretty unique and another worthy effort from the Wolf pack, another cub to be proud of.

And that uniqueness owes much to Wicklow. The brewers: “In early June we made a trip to the hop farm to forage some elderflower for this year’s Locavore Summer 2022.For our Summer Locavore release, we forage the wild landscape of Wicklow for flavours that will allow us to experiment and champion the local terroir. We hand picked some vibrant elderflower from the hedgerows that border our hop farm. It is these native Irish hedgerows that provide a picturesque backdrop, increases biodiversity and that will give this Elderflower Saison a taste of the Wicklow hills.

Pic by Wicklow Wolf

For the brewing of this season’s locavore release, we brewed a saison using our very own malted barley and wheat. The elderflower was hand picked and added straight to the brewhouse at 15g/l. Our Locavore Project epitomises the core philosophy that Wicklow Wolf was founded upon, provenance and pride. The Locavore Project allows us to celebrate the terroir of Wicklow, our home and champion it with small batch, local, experimental beers.” 

Geek Bits

Hops: Mosaic, Centennial, plus15g/l Foraged Elderflower

Malts: Wicklow Wolf Pilsner, Wheat & Munich Malt

Whiplash Ephemeral Table Beer 2.6% ABV, Whiplash Online

Whiplash’s first table beer comes in a hazy lemon colour with a soft white head that sinks slowly enough. It has an ABV of just 2.6, hence the table beer designation. Don’t let that put you off. There’s a genius at work here, well in Dublin 10.

I did the old foam finger test (as I was once shown by the Belgian beer sommelier Marc Stroobant) and what do I get but basil or “bays-il” as one prominent chef terms it. There is much more of course, after all the ever inventive Whiplash crew are driving this one. As well as basil, they have added lemon zest and that too comes through on the pleasing palate.

You’ve got a full team of malts here and Whiplash rely on the Hersbrucker hops to add noble spice notes. And you certainly get that. Indeed, there is quite a lot going on here, so much that you (well, “I”) don’t notice the modest ABV or should I say the lack of a higher rate. Fine by me. At a table this summer, indoors or out. Worth a check for sure!

The Brewery say: Introducing our first Table Beer, Ephemeral. Traditionally, this style is for everyone at the table, low ABV, great with a meal and something to take you through the evening & beyond. However, the exact style would have differed from place to place. We've gone for the continental interpretation. It's then fermented on our Belgian yeast with fresh lemon zest and basil added for a brief time before crashing and canning. The sum of all these parts results in a beautiful beer that's just perfect for sipping on these long summer nights.

Geek Bits:

Pilsner Malt

Wheat Malt

Oat Malt

Carapils

Hersbrucker

Lemon Zest

Basil

WLP410 (yeast).

Pic via Lough Gill

Lough Gill Wild Irish Gose 4.0% ABV, 440 ml can Bradleys

Poured this into a glass that is shaped like a can. And the “can” helped show off the nice big soft white head over a mid-gold colour and lots of bubbles racing up towards the top.

The added ingredients, salt and coriander, can be detected in the aromas. The head has just about vanished as I take the first sip; vaguely salty now but most definitely refreshing, tartily so, as many of these goses are. 

Should be good with oysters! Refreshing for sure but I don’t think I’d be calling for a second can on the night but would have no problem starting the next night with one and a couple of Harty’s oysters.

Gose is a sour beer, usually soured with the lactic bacteria that is included here. It is a German beer, traditionally brewed in Leipzig and named after a local river.

Ingredients: Lough Gill Water, Malted barley and wheat, hops, yeast, sea salt, coriander and Lactobacillus Plantarum.

O Brother Social Proof Amarillo Mosaic IPA 6.5%, 440 ml can Bradleys

The O Brother philosophy: Take the first step and you’ve the hardest part done. OBB started with 3 lads who left their jobs to pursue a passion and we haven’t looked back since! A person’s journey toward their dream can begin at any time, you just need to take that leap of faith.

Top tip: Enjoy a nice cold one now and again to calm the nerves, it helps.

The first step here is to take a look at this IPA in the glass. It’s a murky orange with a soft and fairly quick shrinking head. Aromas are on the citrusy side with hints of resin in the background. Tropical flavours abound on the palate, stone fruit too (such as peach and nectarine). Quite a strong showing in the mouth before a good dry finish.

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WORLD BEER CUP AWARDS PRESENTATION

Understandably not many European breweries make their way to America for the World Beer Cup Awards ceremony in May. The American Brewers Association very nicely throws a party for them a little while later in conjunction with the German Brewers Association annual Brauertag, held this year in Berlin. This was a sweet coincidence for Kinnegar’s owner duo, Rick and Libby, who spent the best part of a decade in this fascinating city directly after the fall of the Berlin wall. Returning to their old stomping ground to collect a 2022 World Beer Cup gold award for Black Bucket was a very proud moment.

The above, including pic, is just a little extract from the current Kinnegar newsletter, one of the very best I've come across.

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Beer of the Year Contenders and July's Favourites

Favourite Beers of July

(The long list, from a longer list!)

Best of July (long list)

Session: Kinnegar Brewers at Play #24 Summer Ale. Whiplash Ephemeral Table Beer 2.6%. Dot Brew Loose Session IPA 3.5%; 

IPA: Wicklow Wolf West Side Story West Coast Kveik IPA; Dot Go Go IPA

Witbier: Whiplash Alma Witbier 

Saison: Wicklow Wolf Locavore Summer 2022 Foraged Elderflower Saison Red Ale: Clonakilty Foxy Red Ale. 

Gose: Lough Gill Wild Irish Gose. 

Beer of the Year Contenders  to date:

June: Wicklow Wolf Mescan Wit or Without You Belgian Wit

May: Wicklow Wolf Locavore Spring 2022 Barrel Aged Farmhouse Ale

April: Whiplash True Love Waits Dry Hopped Pils

March: Lineman Schadenfreude Schwarzbier

February: Wicklow Wolf  “Apex Cherry” Black Cherry Oatmeal Stout.

January: Whiplash Dry the Rain Double Decoction Dunkel

December: Lough Gill Mac Nutty Macadamia Nut

Pints enjoyed in bars:

The Maritime, Bantry: 9 White Deer Kölsch

The Lake Hotel, Killarney: Ale and Lager by Killarney Brewing Co.

Merry’s, Dungarvan: Wicklow Wolf Ale

The Shelbourne, Cork: Beamish

The Cotton Ball, Cork: Lynch’s Stout, Indian Summer

Mellet’s Emporium, Swinford: Reel Deel Jack the Lad, Mescan Seven Virtues Lager.

Keenan’s, Tarmonbarry, Co. Roscommon: White Hag Little Fawn; Kinnegar’s Scraggy Bay.

Friendliness. Food. Flowers. All, and more, at Keenan’s of Tarmonbarry.

Friendliness. Food. Flowers. All, and more, at Keenan’s of Tarmonbarry

Friendliness. Food. Flowers. You’ll find all three, and much more besides, in Keenan’s Hotel in Tarmonbarry on the Roscommon Longford border.

Indeed, the location is another plus factor for this family run hotel, the premises founded in 1865 and now run by the sixth generation of the family. 

This part of the restaurant overlooks the Shannon.

The historic pub lies at the crossroads of the mighty River Shannon flowing north to south, and the N5 linking the east and west coasts; the N4 is also close by. 

Tarmonbarry Bridge, built in the mid-1840s and probably tolled in the early days, made the location a strategic one for the new pub and it soon became a regular watering hole for travellers as it is to this day. In the mid-1970s the bridge was adapted so it could open to accommodate larger watercraft.

This salmon was a favourite!

Enjoyed this..

Waterways are important in this area of the country. Keenan’s are on the bank of Shannon, alongside that bridge (to Longford) were boats pass through and a few hundred yards down is the Tarmonbarry Lock, a peaceful spot (the only noise is when the lock gates operate!) with fine views and mooring spaces for boats.

Travellers come from far and near, by road, river and canal, to Keenan’s, especially this time of the year, “the queen weeks” as Annette Keenan called them when we chatted. Last Wednesday evening was busy there, scores of diners in the bar. 

..and this!

But there were even more present on the Thursday, yet they handled it all very well, finding tables for everyone. And the food was of a very good standard indeed and of course I was happy to see two craft brews on tap!

The craft beers available were the Scraggy Bay from Donegal’s Kinnegar and the Little Fawn by Sligo’s White Hag. Over the two nights, I sampled both and delighted to do so.They may well have had other local beers in bottle. Also, on the shelves, you’ll spot the distinctive blue gin bottle of the nearby Lough Ree distillery. I was kicking myself as I hadn’t known about it when strolling through Lanesborough earlier in the day - I must have walked past it! How could that happen?

Anyway, back to the food. They have quite a menu here. We enjoyed their Chicken Wings (with sesame seeds, Hot Sauce, side blue cheese mayo & celery sticks), Shredded duck confit in crispy filo pastry, rocket salad, drizzled with hoisin, lime & chilli jam, but our favourite was perhaps the classic Atlantic Prawn Cocktail With Marie rose sauce (no shortage of prawns!).

Rhubarb & plum crumble. Yum!

Lots of choice too on the mains menu, everything from steak to vegetarian. Dishes that we enjoyed were their Steak Sandwich (6oz Sirloin Steak on a toasted ciabatta bread with garlic butter, topped with sauté onions, served with a side of hand-cut chips & pepper sauce), the Roasted confit of Duck, crushed baby potatoes with bacon & onion, grilled asparagus & broccoli, orange sauce, and also Roast Chicken Supreme (with gratin potatoes, grilled tender stem broccoli & asparagus, celeriac apple velouté sauce, balsamic glaze). 

Panoramic shot as pleasure boat approaches the lifted section of bridge with traffic stopped on both sides on the N5. The boat had just come through the Tarmonbarry Lock, a few hundred metres back. A few boats came through
from the left as well.

We had a favourite here with lots of flavour and textures and that was the Fresh Roast Salmon with sauté pak choi, mixed peppers, courgette & red onion, grilled asparagus & broccoli, with mango salsa & baby potatoes.

 

Our dive into the desserts wasn’t quite that deep but we certainly enjoyed the two that we managed, the Mango & Passionfruit Pannacotta with Champagne sorbet and also the crunchy and very tasty Rhubarb and Plum Crumble.

A boat comes through the bridge and heads for the nearby
Tarmonbarry Lock.

In the morning, it was upstairs (for us) to the lovely breakfast room and another fine menu, full of choice. Again local producers were supported with eggs from Diffley’s farm, bacon and sausages from Dunnes farm and black and white pudding from Kellys of Newport. We enjoyed various combinations after starting with orange juice and cereals (including their own impressive granola). Hot porridge was also available. And a highlight was a really well made brown bread.

We were out and about most of the time so didn’t get to sample the lunch menu but it looks tempting and contains quite a few of the dishes available later on, along with a selection of sandwiches. You’ll be well fed here, no matter what time of day you call in!

More on Keenan's here. 

Part 2

Friendliness. Food. Flowers. You’ll find all three, and much more besides, in Keenan’s Hotel in Tarmonbarry on the Roscommon Longford border.

At your service! Father and son: Barry and David.

In Part 1, we spoke mainly about the food. Let us get back to the friendliness. Because of the seasonality of the business here, staff will change but the class of 2022 seems to me to be exceptional. Excellent teamwork all round, very friendly and also very efficient. And of course, family members such as Annette and Barry and son David pitch in and work as hard as anyone.

Keenan's looks well on its N4 side.

David, part of the sixth generation here, was appointed as general manager last year. The original pub, a more modest establishment, was opened by David’s great great great grandfather, Hugh Reynolds, on the same site in 1865. 

David’s parents, Barry and Annette Keenan, took over 25 years ago and were responsible for introducing the food service with which Keenans has become synonymous, as well as developing the 12-bedroom boutique hotel.

And on the river side where the rooms, with flowers on the balconies,
 overlook the mighty River Shannon.

The welcome here begins with the flowers, organised by Annette. The striking arrangement, both on the streetside and on the riverbank aspect, are bright and cheerful and beckon you to stop. After all, if people take such care of their public places, then I reckon the same care will be applied within the premises and so it proved over our two-day stay.

Indeed, the whole village looks neat and tidy. On our second day, the concrete faces of the bridge were getting a new coat of paint. Tarmonbarry Lock, a couple of hundred yards from the hotel, is also well kept, a good place to sit and relax and watch the boats come and go.

Teasels in Strokestown Walled Garden.

Picking Keenan’s as a location makes many interesting places very accessible indeed. Here are a few that we visited. Our first stop was Elphin, to see the famous windmill, the only one in Connacht. Well, we did get to see it but it wasn’t working as repairs were in progress.

Our next stop, a longer and a much more sobering one was at Strokestown House, to see the National Famine Museum. We then took a stroll through the Woodland Park and the huge walled gardens before a lovely light lunch in the café there. Unluckily for us, Strokestown House wasn’t yet open to the public so we missed out on further increasing the “experience" of the famine times. We’ll have to go again, for a third time, as we also missed out a few years when while staying in Roscommon Town.

Another stop was at Ballyleague (Roscommon) and across the bridge to Lanesborough (Longford). More scenic views and plenty of boats too.

At rest in the Hidden Ireland, on the Royal Canal in Cloondara

Then it was time to head to the hotel and soon we were strolling down to the lock. And yes there were a few boats coming in and heading for the bridge. From the lock, we could see a section of the bridge rising to allow the boats through and the following day, we got a close-up view of that operation, carried out by staff from the lock.

Walking the National Famine Way

On the second morning, we strolled over the bridge and walked a kilometre or so, maybe a little longer, to Cloondara in Longford. This little village is where we found the Royal Canal and quite a few boats. Here too the National Famine Way continues; it is a self-guided Trail detailing the ill-fated journey of 1,490 famine emigrants who walked from Strokestown Park to ships in Dublin in 1847, at the height of the Irish Famine.

This 165km digitally and physically waymarked historic trail following in the footsteps of the famine emigrants and particularly focusing on one of them, 12 year old Daniel Tighe. The National Famine Way™ runs from Strokestown Park, Co. Roscommon to EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum in Dublin’s Docklands, along country roads and the Royal Canal towpath. 

Bronze childrens shoes mark the National Famine Way.

An app is available free of charge from the App Store. The official pack and passport with OSI Map ensure an optimum experience for walkers and cyclists on the safe and relatively flat route. The trail is waymarked by 32 poignant sculptures of bronze 19th-century children’s shoes along the route.

This accredited Heritage and Arts Trail not only links two significant Irish museums but also makes the connection between Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands and Ireland’s Ancient East and echoes current day famine and migration. In addition to the health, historical, cultural and arts impact it offers an economic boost to local communities with cycling hire, cafés, bars, shops and accommodation all benefiting.

Much more info on the National Famine Way may be seen here. 

Our boat, the Blue Moon.

Having seen so many enjoy the lakes, rivers and canals, we headed for Carrick-on-Shannon and a cruise on the river in the Moon River, an all-weather “adventure” in a fully enclosed and heated cruiser, owned and run by Blue Moon. There is some limited outdoor seating at front and rear. The company highlights that the boat is a fun adventure and provides music and a bar. Later, we visited the quiet village of Leitrim.

Plans to visit the Shed Distillery in Drumshanbo didn’t quite work out so we’ll have to go again. And, with a base like Keenan’s, that won’t be any hardship at all!

Also on this trip:

Local Whiskey and Beers all the way from Mayo to Roscommon 

48 Hours in Roscommon and neighbouring counties