A Valentine’s Ale brewed in the heart of Ireland. 'Sexy Like A' Chocolate Strawberry.

A Valentine’s Ale brewed in the heart of Ireland

Head Brewer, Roger Rotheroe

Athlone brewer Roger Rotheroe has come up with a sweet potion for your Valentine.

Brand new for St. Valentine’s Day 2020 is a chocolate strawberry cream ale from Dead Centre Brewing in Athlone. Revelling in the name ‘Sexy Like A’, the quirky new brew is a one-off, keg-only limited edition from the innovative brewery.

The unusual name 'Sexy Like A', is a reference to a line from a film called 'Role Models' where Sean William Scott uses the phrase 'sexy like a chocolate strawberry'. Taking it a step further, this beer is 'Sexy Like A' Chocolate Strawberry Cream Ale.

“The Valentine’s Ale is the brain-child of our Head Brewer, Roger Rotheroe”, explains Liam Tutty who founded Dead Centre Brewing just a year ago, “It's a traditional American style beer called a cream ale which doesn't actually contain any cream - instead it's a mild, pale, light-bodied ale which is perfect for showcasing other flavours. In this instance we wanted to create a classic chocolate strawberry character.”

Love potion #???

The 4.8% ale was brewed on the Dead Centre pilot kit (which they use for testing and small batch brewing) in a very small batch of 75 litres. They added white chocolate and milk sugars to the boil to give a subtle undertone of chocolate as well as deliver a creamy mouthfeel to the beer. It contains hops such as Citra and Mosaic which were specially selected to pair with the 11kg of fresh strawberries that were also added to the beer.
‘Sexy Like A’ will be served in in the taproom at Dead Centre Brewing, Custume Quay, Athlone for Valentine’s night and will be served with white chocolate dipped strawberries. If you can’t make that, there is one single keg being distributed. That keg is headed to CarryOut Tyrrelstown in Dublin to be used on their Growler System (a takeaway beer filling system).

Finding the food of love on Sligo Food Trail

press release

Finding the food of love on Sligo Food Trail

The food of love on Sligo Food Trail. Find these Valentine's Cakes at The Bakehouse at Lyons Café

St. Valentine’s Day is synonymous not only with love, but with food as well. To celebrate the most romantic night of the year everyone loves to dine out in style. Here’s the Sligo Food Trail guide to finding the most fabulous food of love without a tacky plastic rose in sight.

Castles in the air …What could be more romantic than whisking your Valentine away on a luxurious overnight break in magical Markree Castle. The lavish package includes early check in and a very late check out (2.30pm) as well as afternoon tea with Prosecco, chocolates, Voya seaweed products and a 5-course candlelit dinner from chef Lee Mastin. Treat the love of your life to this very special break for just €145pps. Email to book.

Take the love tour
Sligo Food Tours fare kicking off their 2020 season with a Valentine’s Special on Friday 14^th February from 2.30-5pm all around Sligo town. Hans and Gaby Wieland promise a food experience packed with flavour, freshness and fun not to mention the food of love, aphrodisiac ingredients and some special treats too. Book the Sligo Love Tour here. 

Fine dining Valentine fare
Award winning fine dining restaurant Eala Bhán along the Garavogue River has a very special Valentine’s Menu from chef Marcin Szczodrowski. It’s four delicious courses with a glass of bubbly Prosecco for just €44.95 and it is available from 13-16 February.

Super sexy Supper ClubsSupper Clubs are the casual side of eating out with your loved one. Three fabulous cafés on Sligo Food Trail are offering Valentine’s Supper Clubs to make you swoon. In Strandhill, Shell’s Seaside Café invite you to bring your beloved and celebrate Valentines with a lovely three course meal for €35. You can even bring your own bottle (BYOB). Call 071 9122938 to reserve your table.

Nook in Collooney promises four 4 courses of seasonal sexy food, Prosecco cocktails and cheesy love. It’s perfect for couples, groups of friends, double daters and lovers of good food and costs €40 (BYOB). Call 0719118973 to secure your spot on either Friday 14^th or Saturday 15^th February.

The Jam Pot in Grange are also taking booking for their Valentine's Supper Club on Friday 14th February at 7.30pm. Ideal for couples or groups of friends, the cost is just€40 for 4 courses. To book, call 087 1644228.

Stay in Sligo – the land of hearts desireA one (or two) night stay in The Glasshouse in the heart of Sligo town could be just the ticket for Valentine’s weekend. Star Chef Alan Fitzmaurice has created a sumptuous six course menu including his signature hand crafted chocolates. You’ll find more of those chocolatey delights plus a bottle of Prosecco awaiting you in your room on arrival. Available from 14-16 February from €250 per couple. Non-residents can enjoy dinner for just €45. Phone 071 9194300 to book. Sligo Park Hotel has a two night romantic escape with dinner in their award winning AA Rosette Hazelwood Restaurant. Book on 071 919 0400.

Love TokensIf gift giving is more your style, you’ll find Sligo Food Trail rich in tasty treasures to suit your love. Choose some elegant wines from Hargadon’s Wine Shop, a Lough Gill Brewery craft beer set or a voucher for any of our delectable dining spots, food tours, food experiences or a romantic break away. Ideal fare for every food lover.

You’ll find details on all Sligo Food Trail members on the website.

Bubbles for your Valentine! SuperValu cut the price of courting.

Bubbles for your Valentine

With the saving on this Pierre Darcys champagne, you'll be able to buy the flowers as well. Double those brownie points!

If music be the food of love, play on, a famous bard wrote. Add a few bubbles though….

And it’s easy to do it these days as SuperValu cut the price of courting with a  selection of sparkling wines all reduced (you’ll have a few bob left over for the flowers) for the day of love. So go pick your Cava, your Champagne, your Prosecco. There’s even an alcohol free one.

Barciño Cava Brut NV, 11.5%, €13.99 (was 25.99) until February 13th.

This vibrant wine is named after Barcelona “the city we love”, say the producers. It is bottle fermented, using the Methode Traditionnelle, same as is used for Champagne.

It is a very light gold colour - see those non-stop fountains of bubbles rise. Modest aromas are light and fresh. The palate, with those fine bubbles, is bright and zesty and then that classic fresh bread finish. This lovely Cava will help start the celebrations as an aperitif. Why not try a few tapas with this well crafted wine?

Graham Norton Prosecco Frizzante 11%, €10.00 (was 12.00) until February 13th.

Light gold is also the colour here and again there are lots of bubbles but this time they don’t hang around. This is a Frizzante (gently sparkling) not a Spumante (fully sparkling). You’ll also note a different closure on it - use your normal corkscrew to get started.

While it is nowhere near as bubbly as the Cava, this calmer bottle is very very pleasant indeed. Graham’s light and fresh Frizzante could well turn a midweek party up a notch or two. Anyone for pizza and prosecco?

Two wandering Kiwis and the Irish comic are behind the GN wines, "honest....without the BS" they say. All of the previous GN wines are from down under and this Prosecco's an exception, made with 100% Glera grapes from the home of Prosecco in NE Italy.

The McGuigan Frizzante is also on offer, down to €10.00 from 14.99, again until the 13th. I remember Neil McGuigan introducing it at a dinner in the Trident not too long ago - he just loved getting the most out of the pronunciation!  

“It comes in a resealable bottle,” he said. “It is produced from Semillon grapes, it is easy drinking, for everyday”. Nothing wrong with easy drinking on Valentine’s either! It is fresh, soft, scented and grapey, with delicious lightness and good length. Best served chilled.

Pierre Darcys Champagne Brut NV 20 euro (was 49.99) until Feb 13th

IWSC Silver Medal 2015 (pictured top);  Judges' verdict: “Pale lemon-yellow, steady streams of small bubbles ; fresh, delicate aromas showing green apple and hints of red fruit behind, fresh bread; well-balanced with bracing acidity, richness across the mid-palate and lingering crisp finish. Harmonious wine.”

Also on offer are the AG Blanc de Blancs and the AG Brut Rosé (each at €10.00, down from €17.99) and the non-alcoholic Freixenet Legero Sparkling at €7.00.

A Special Night for a Special Cause

Announcing details of this years Threshold Valentine's Night Dinner were (l to r) Edel Conlon Threshold, Chef Brendan Cashman and Rebecca Harte Farmgate Cafe

A Special Night for a Special Cause

Threshold's Valentine's night dinner is a special night, on a special day, in a special place, brought to you by a wonderfully passionate culinary team... Oh and if that's not enough, it's in aid of a very important Charity.

The event is held each year in the Farmgate Cafe located in the historical English Market in Cork City. The evening captures all the atmosphere the English Market has to offer (remember that atmosphere includes the need for warm clothes!) and when coupled with the wonderful team at the Farmgate Cafe the evening becomes truly memorable. For those who attend they get to experience the Market at night time, something that does not happens very often and is a rare treat.

This year will be even more exciting, the Farmgate Cafe have invited multi award winning chef and restaurateur Brendan Cashman to create the menu in collaboration with the team in the Farmgate kitchen. Brendan is best known for the wonderful food he created in Augustine’s Restaurant and will be creating a menu especially for the night. We feel that an already unique evening will be made even more special with this exciting collaboration.

The dinner is in aid of local charity Threshold, the national housing charity which works to prevent homelessness and campaigns for housing as a right. (www.threshold.ie)

The evening is supported by Cork City Council and of course the very generous support and hard work from the Farmgate Cafe team. We are very grateful to Irish Distillers who have supported the event for a number of years, as have a number of food producers in the English Market itself and others selected from Cork's rich array of food producers.

Couples, groups and singles celebrate the night together without the "soft focus haze" that is typically associated with Valentine's night in a unique and special place.

Call Threshold for tickets and more information: (021) 427 88 48

Venue: The English Market (entrance via Market Parade on Patrick's Street)

Time: 7pm

Date: Valentine's Night Thursday 14th February

Tickets: €60 (Tickets are limited so make sure you get your tickets early!)

Valentine's: from tea to wine to aphrodisiacs

CELEBRATING VALENTINE’S WITH TEA. AND WITH WINE.


Seems to be confusion galore about St Valentine, the Patron Saint of Lovers. How many saints of that name were there? Anything from one to fourteen, depending on where you read.

Hard to say then if the real Valentine enjoyed a cup tea or a glass of wine, two suggested ways of celebrating next Tuesday, the first recommended by Nash 19, the second by the folks at the Wine Store.

Nash 19 may not have saintly approval but Mairead O’Brien quotes Henry James: “There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony know as Afternoon Tea.” Nash 19 will be serving Afternoon Tea in Honour of St Valentine during February and March. The daily slot is 2.45 to 4.00pm, booking is essential (021 4270880) and cost for two is €38.00.

Mrs Tyrrell of the Wine Store tells me they love their Northern Rhone wines and would love to share some with you this month. “The list of the wines in this offer include many that are not normally listed on the site, some are only available in very limited quantities.” Looks like a special to me and well worth checking out here.

Must say, I enjoyed my Plan de Dieu during last summer’s trip to the area and spotted one on the list - Côtes du Rhône Villages, Plan de Dieu 'Le Temps est Venu' 2010. It is down from 15.95 to 13.95. And there are decent deductions on the prices of Condrieu and Côte Rôtie. Certainly worth a look. But hurry if you want a Rhone special in for the big day!

If you want to really impress why not check out the Fotal Island Hotel. They have some tempting packages here.

And, if you’re truly daring, or just chancing your arm, the Town Bar and Grill in Kildare Street (Dublin)  have a Special aphrodisiac menu on for Valentine’s Day!