A Quart of Ale± #65. On the craft journey with Eight Degrees, Heaney's, Sullivan's and Tom Crean.

A Quart of Ale± #65

On the craft journey with Eight Degrees, Heaney's, Sullivan's and Tom Crean

Eight Degrees Original Gravity Juicy IPA 6.5%, 440 can O’Donovan’s

This new juicy IPA from Eight Degrees has a colour like a field of ripe barley in the July sun. There’s a slowly sinking soft white head on top and 2.11 zillion (margin of error ± 2.5%) micro bubbles rushing upwards through a slight veil of haze. Aromas are quite intense, citrus and tropical. On the palate, the feel is like a Rolls Royce drive with all the add ons, soft, smooth, beautifully balanced, more than enough to brighten up your journey. So go on and take it for a test drive. Lift your jour out of the ordinaire. As my Cajun friend might say (or sing): Laissez les bons temps rouler.

They say: This juicy IPA was brewed with Irish pale ale, wheat and oats before being lightly kettle hopped with Enigma. We used Sabro and experimental hop HBC 630 in the whirlpool, triple dry-hopping with the same hops for added aroma. This beer has intense tropical fruit and coconut aromas and flavours, with a soft body and smooth mouthfeel. Just what we need for brighter days.

As always, Eight Degrees come up with food pairings:
This is the summer of outdoor dining, much of which will be taking place in your own back garden, so pair the Original Gravity Juicy IPA with a homemade pizza cooked on the barbecue – it’s well worth checking out Donal Skehan’s recipe: Thin Crust Barbecue Pizza. Try topping the pizza with thinly sliced new potato, artichoke and rosemary or Gubbeen chorizo with roasted red peppers and Toonsbridge mozzarella for a couple of pairings that will showcase this juicy IPA to perfection. Finish with some grilled apricots, topped with mascarpone and chilli honey or a summery peach melba: poached peaches, a scoop of vanilla ice cream topped with raspberry coulis to make the stone fruit flavours in both beer and food sing. 

Laissez les bons temps rouler. Encore!

As you may know, Eight Degrees had a serious competition for the design on their Original Gravity cans and this, the first, was designed by John Culhane of Graphic Jam. “The most luminous of all the colours of the spectrum, yellow reflects happiness, optimism, enlightenment and sunshine. My design is based on the concept of humans flourishing and the joy of knowing that better times are coming. CARPE DIEM!” He could have had added: Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Okay. Forget the foreign languages for a sec. What is this Original Gravity thing? I’ll let the Brewer’s Friend explain: Original gravity (OG) measures how much sugar is present in the wort before it is fermented. The final gravity (FG) is how much sugar is left over when fermentation is done. For a beer to fit into a certain style, each of these numbers must be within the specified range as the chart depicts. A lower final gravity indicates a dry or crisp flavor, while a higher final gravity indicates a sweet or malty flavor.

Heaney’s Irish Stout 4.3%, 500 bottle Bradleys

Not my first time having this stout from the Heaney Farmhouse Brewery in Co. Derry. It is black, with a coffee coloured head that loses volume pretty quickly. Stick your finger in the head and taste the coffee and chocolate which are more or less what you’ll get from the aromas. No oatmeal here but the palate is rich and smooth, caramel and chocolate and that roasted malt finish, a dry one also, a good bite at the finish. Satisfaction guaranteed!

Competition in the stout arena is quite stiff and this one is now, as it  was last time, well up to the average. Then again, virtually everything the Heaneys produce is in the top bracket.

Heaney’s always come up with food pairings and here they suggest slow-cooked meat dishes or a rich chocolate dessert.

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

Black as the famed marble of the county is this stout by Sullivan’s of Kilkenny. The off white head doesn’t hang about. An exploratory finger into that head confirms that this has quite a bitterness and  that same quality is tasted on the palate, with roast coffee prominent and fruit notes also in the mix. And there’s a good long lip-smacking finish.

They say: Enjoy the true taste of traditional Irish stout brewed with roast barley, chocolate and wheat malts and choicest hops. A generous stout with extra depth of flavour. The hops are Admiral, Magnum, and Goldings.

With the many changes in the mainstream Cork brewing scene over the decades, Beamish Stout has maintained an enduring respect even among those who have turned to craft. And if you spot similarities to Beamish here, then well done. 

The brewer of this Kilkenny stout regularly walked past the Cork brewery in his youth and enjoyed the smell of the hops and, after some 15 years producing Guinness in Africa, his aim on the banks of the Nore was to produce a traditional Irish dry stout, to give us more taste, more balance, more roast, more character, more flavour, to make it more balanced, more velvety.

That brewer is Ian Hamilton who has accumulated in total over three decades of brewery and packaging experience in Ireland, the United Kingdom and Africa. He is experienced in production of world-class lagers ales and stouts. Hamilton is widely considered to be one of Ireland’s most experienced technical brewers.

Now where did I go wrong? For many years, I drove home daily past Murphy’s Brewery, opening the car windows to take in those tempting aromas. But I never thought of making a career out of it!

Tom Crean Scurvy Dog IPA 4.2%, 440 can At the Brewery

A clean light gold is the colour of this Tom Crean IPA which has an incredible low abv of 4.2% which puts it into the session category. Micro bubbles galore. Head retention is close to zero but no matter. Aromas are citrusy and that continues on the palate where this crisp and light beer provides refreshment enough. Easy to enjoy this one. Or two.. or three…

They say: A session IPA known to convert wine drinkers to beer drinkers!  Crisp and light with a refreshing after taste, not over bittered, relying on the aroma hops to do all the work.

And they add: A session IPA known to convert wine drinkers to beer drinkers.

Tom Crean Expedition Red Ale 4.2%, 440 can At the Brewery

This was the name that, contract brewed in 2015, launched the Tom Crean family brewery in Kenmare. “Now modified into a different ale, pushing a balanced malty sweetness, with chocolate malts giving rich colour to complement our combination of American and European hops. The beer is named after Tom’s three Antarctic expeditions and our 2016 Centenary expedition to South Georgia.  See the shop and the book Honouring Tom Crean.”

The brewer's book!

It has that rich amber colour with an off white head. The malt makes its first impression in the aromas and continues to lead the way on the palate where you’ll meet caramel flavours in a clean and refreshing flow. Quite a simple drink but quite often less is more and that is the case here.

You may visit the little brewery in Kenmare for guided tours and tasting sessions with the brewer himself, the witty Bill Sheppard. Find out Bill’s methods and hear the fascinating story of explorer Tom Crean.

Red Ales are usually pretty good with food and they suggest pairing it with: grilled or roast meats, mature cheese and goats cheese, cheese cake and caramel or toffee based dessert. That last option is an interesting one - must keep it in mind!

A Quart of Ale± #50. On the craft journey with Dungarvan Brewing and their move into canning.

 A Quart of Ale± #50 On the craft journey with Dungarvan Brewing and their move into canning.

Dungarvan Brewing Company Move to Canning

Claire Dalton, one of the four founders of Dungarvan in 2008, is delighted with their very recent move to canning their beers. 

We asked the beer sommelier and Irish Food Champion why Dungarvan were a bit behind the curve with regard to canning. What persuaded you to make the move? 

Claire: We've always been a bottled product and considered ourselves 'bottled
first' and use a bottle conditioning process where the beer undergoes a
second fermentation in the bottle, which gives the beer its fizz. We
could see the growth in cans over the past few years and it was
something we wanted to look at doing, and the question was whether we
changes our process, invest in conditioning equipment etc to give it a
go, outsource the production to another brewery or look at using our
current conditioning process and seeing if that works in a can. The
issue was getting a small enough piece of equipment to trial it on
before 'going big' so this is why it's taken until now to get our beer
into a can! We've been able to rent a hand canning system to do trials
and get our first batches out on which is great as it's meant that we've
kept our production in house, which is something we've always been proud
of, and been able to keep using our natural carbonation process.

Q2: Can conditioning was the aim. It took you a while to crack that? Did the experience of any other brewers help you come to a decision.

Claire: We started looking into the can conditioning process initially by

trying out as many can conditioned beers we could get our hands on and

reading up on the process and the stories of other brewers who'd done

it.  We chatted to a few people in the industry who were doing can

conditioning in the UK and we also had a good conversation with Shane

from Dot Brewing who'd filled his barrel aged beers into cans using the

same system as us.  Shane was a great help, even taking a late night

phone call when the machine was being temperamental for us!  Can

conditioning is done a bit in smaller breweries in the US and UK but

other than Dot Brewing there's been no other can conditioned beers in

Ireland so there was a great sense of pride in this as well.

Q3 - You are obviously happy with the outcome? How have they been received by customers?

Claire: We're delighted with the outcome, both with the beer and the

branding.  We had a clear idea of what we wanted with our branding,

without knowing what the final look would be, in that we wanted elements

of our existing bottle branding but a much more pared back, contemporary

look.  I think we've really gotten back what we asked for, and the

bottles and cans can sit side by side with each other. The reaction to

both the beers and branding has been great so far, it's been so lovely

reading all the kind words people have sent about them.

Q4 - What’s your own favourite? What beers are next in line for canning?

Clare: Never like choosing a favourite!! But of the three we released it was

lovely to have Mahon Falls again as we've not done it for two years, and

I do like a rye beer.  Our plan is to launch more of our core range into

cans each month and then get some one offs and new brews going!  Our

June releases are scheduled to be our Greenway beer, which has kind of

become our summer seasonal for the past couple of years, and our alcohol

free beer Main Sail which we've been working on new bottle and can

branding for and are looking forward to that one.

Q5 - Do you have a mobile canning contractor calling or did you invest yourselves? 

Claire - We started off on a rental unit, which we are still using, to test

out the market and based on the reaction so far I would say that cans

will be a big part of our future so we will be looking into purchasing

our own system.

****

The first beers to be released by the brewery in cans are core range beers Helvick Gold and Mine Head plus the re-release of springtime favourite Mahon Falls, a Rye Pale Ale at 5.1% abv. The beers are widely available via Fourcorners; I bought my trio at Bradleys

Dungarvan “Helvick Gold” Irish Blonde Ale, 4.9%, 440ml can

Light gold is the colour of this Helvick Head, a Dungarvan blonde ale, named after a local landmark. The old finger test on the frothy white head, indicates a balanced beer with fruit and hops to the fore, the fruitiness in the aromas, the hoppiness more on the palate. “Our blonde ale is not a bland ale,” they, rightly, declare. It’s a flavour-packed ride all the way to a refreshing dry finish. The craft beer beginner will find some other beers better to start off with but this will keep the more experienced very much onside.

They say: Helvick is a great summer’s day drink, perfect for cracking out at the barbeque. Enjoy at cellar temperature (8—14°C) or cooler for a great warm weather thirst quencher. It’s an excellent beer to pair with food and works particularly well with spicy food.

And that food? Good with spicy foods, or try it with seafood — the citrus of the cascade hops provides the perfect accompaniment to fish and shellfish without overpowering the flavours. Goes well with a variety of cheese also. Check it all out here .

Geek Info -
Style: Blonde Ale
ABV: 4.9%
Hops: Cascade, East Kent Goldings, Northern Brewer
IBUs: 41

Dungarvan “Mahon Falls” Rye Pale Ale, 5.1%, 440ml can 

Mid gold with a touch of amber is the colour of this Rye pale ale from Dungarvan, again named after a local landmark. This is a seasonal release and the first such to be canned by the brewery. It’s got a soft slightly off-white head that hangs about as the bubbles power up. Aromas are citrus-y with a touch of spice. It is fruity and fresh on the palate with a malty background. Lots of irresistible flavour here, amazing harmony throughout, and a refreshing rye bite at the finale. 

They say: March 2019 saw the fifth bottle release of our spring seasonal, Mahon Falls Rye Pale Ale, which was first served at festivals in 2012 and went on to become our annual spring release after. Following a two year hiatus, we are delighted to welcome the spring once again with this punchy rye ale in can form.

Best served lightly chilled, from 8-12°C. Try with lighter-flavoured foods  like chicken, pork and fish or even with salad dishes. Its fruitiness works really well with the tang of a Wensleydale or Caerphilly style cheese. Try Knockdrinna‘s Laviston or The Little Milk Company‘s Brewer’s Gold.

Geek Bits - 

Style: Rye Pale Ale

ABV: 5.1%

Hops: Galaxy, Summit, Ella

IBUs: 50

As with all Dungarvan beers Helvick Gold contains a vitamin-rich yeast sediment in the can which is a by-product of the natural carbonation that occurs in the can. To pour a clear pint, pour out in one go and leave the last drop in the can. However, this is purely for aesthetic reasons and the sediment is absolutely fine to drink.

Dungarvan “Mine Head” American Pale Ale, 5.5%, 440ml can 

If you’re going make an American Pale Ale, then it’s going to contain Cascade. Dungarvan though went solo, only Cascade here, and you notice it straightaway with that initial hoppy hit in the aromas, rising from a cloudy body topped by a soft and sinking head. That hoppy hit is easily confirmed by the old finger in the head test - stick it and suck it!

They say: This is a classic American style pale ale made using only cascade hops, and also dry hopped with Cascade to impart fresh hop aromas. Released in summer 2014, this is now a full time part of of our core range and available in keg, bottle and now in can year round.

And it is citrus all the balanced way, a teeny touch of marmalade sweetness later on and nothing really bitter at that stage. A pleasant and harmonious bottle, sorry can, indeed. Another one for your short list.

Best served lightly chilled, from 8-12°C and you’ll find it versatile at the table,  working well with lighter fish or with earthy meats such as lamb or beef. Also excellent with spicy Thai or Vietnamese food, or keep it American with a burger! Great with a creamy camembert-style cheese or a tart sheeps cheese.

Geek Bits - 

Style: American Pale Ale

ABV: 5.5%

Hops: Cascade

IBUs: 38

To Øl City - A Brewer's Paradise

To Øl City - A Brewer's Paradise

A pilsner worth waiting for.

To Øl started life in 2005 when founders Tore Gynther and Tobias Emil Jensen “pirated” their high school kitchen facilities during closing hours and began turning it into a brewing lab.

It wasn’t until 2010 when they released their first commercial beer. They quickly gained attention and were named in the Top 100 breweries in the world in 2012 and in 2014 To Øl was awarded the world’s 9th best brewery. For a decade they operated as gypsy brewers, brewing their beers in other breweries with spare capacity, but they have now set up their own brewery in Zealand, Denmark, called To Øl City.

Like to take the brewery tour? Just click here. And, if you're a brewer, you may well get a chance to use the facilities. After all, Tore and Tobias were gypsy brewers themselves. 

Pronunciation "rough" guide for To Øl: An bhfuil tú ullamh? 

To Øl 45 Days Organic Pilsner 4.7%, 44cl can, Bradley's Cork

Showers of bubbles race up through the pale gold (slight haze) of this pilsner. And what a pilsner. Superbly fresh and clean as promised, well-flavoured too and absolutely refreshing. The slower the fermentation, the better a pilsner tastes, they say, and the proof is on any palate lucky enough to be washed in this beauty. Not sure I’ve tasted anything better in this style. Crisp, complex and golden - do watch out for it!

Lager is always the slow-coach in the brewery but this one, the fourth product in their new Core Range, is an authentic German Pilsner, lagered for 45 days at -1 degree Celsius. It is also organic and the malts used are Organic Chit, Organic Golden Light and Organic Pilsner.

To Øl City Session IPA 4.5%, 44cl can, O'Briens Wine

This Danish Indian Pale Ale is a “New England style thirst quencher for the hop-heads” in disguise. It has a pale gold colour and is cloudy; white head vanishes quickly. Aromas are mild, slight citrus and floral notes in there. On the palate it is crisp, with juicy exotic fruit, before a quite dry and refreshing finish. Named after the new brewhouse To Øl City (Tool city, I think!), this is certainly easy-drinking and one (or two) for a session, in the city or elsewhere.

They say: “In the land of Denmark and small town of Svinninge, To Øl City is our new home. The vision is to brew the best beers in the world, and build a craft beverage hub of diverse and talented producers….the industrial rhythm of progress pulsating beneath our feet - as all the creative minds get together over the kettle once again to brew up something special.”

The hops are Mosaic while the hops line-up is Carahell, Flaked Oats, Golden Promise, Pilsner and Wheat.  A terrific combination and well worth looking out for.

To Øl City “House of Pale” Pale Ale 5.5%, 44cl can, O'Briens Wine

A step up in alcohol for the Pale Ale but the colour and the head is much the same as the Session. A little more hop in the aromas. More flavour and less crisp but as they say themselves come here to “get your full-bodied juicy fix”.  That smoothness shows a lot of malt but the hops is not shy either and that juicy stuff is a treat. Put this on your short list for sure.

They say: House Of Pale is one of the recipes we’ve taken from our beloved mad laboratory (brewpub!) in Copenhagen, BRUS. It’s seen many changes and tweaks over this year, experimenting with hop doses and overall ‘crispiness’ - and now we’re pretty sure we’ve got exactly what we’ve been looking for. 

Hops in the ale are Mosaic and Simcoe while the long line of malts consist of Chit Malt, Flaked Oats, Golden Naked Oats, Melanoidin, and Pilsner.

To Øl Whirl Domination IPA 6.2%, 44cl can, O'Briens Wine

To Øl are going for world domination with this IPA, the first to be brewed in their shiny new brewhouse. Colour is a lemon/yellow, with a thin white head that has more staying power than you’d expect. Aromas are hoppy and citrusy and there’s more of the same on the smooth palate. 

The word “extreme” is used as regards the amount of hops used in it yet the hops, while certainly evident, are moderately intense. Just to be clear, the hops come through, no mistaking the Simcoe, with its exotic citric fruitiness. Overall the IPA is quite exquisite, a very enjoyable drink indeed, right the way through to a lip-smacking finish. 

So much so that you can see how To Øl hope to make this one of their core beers. “We pushed the hops to the limit, packing in as much aroma as possible to this fresh beauty. Thus begins a new era of our hoppy world domination - drink it, and embrace the future.” The hops, by the way, are added not early on but at the “whirlpool” phase, hence the name.

Friday Fuar Fliuch! Here’s the Fix! Bubbles. Burgers. Beers.

Friday Fuar Fliuch! Here’s the Fix! 

Bubbles. Burgers. Beers.

For burger lovers, Coqbull Cork seemed to be the place on Friday evening last. It was jammers, a great buzz, a lively racket really, music in there somewhere (I heard the odd thud, thud). 

They come in the front door. They come in the back door. And somehow they all get seated. 

No doubt, Friday is a busy evening here anyhow but the attendance and the atmosphere was enhanced by the Burger Festival (Jan 22nd to 28th). There was even a guy trying to demolish the six-burger record set earlier that day by Bandon man Colin Minihane who “who demolished 6 burgers, fries & a Coqshake in 10.32 mins yes that’s 10.32”.

One would be enough for me thanks! Coqbull provide the full experience here. You can have starters, desserts, craft beers (including their own lager), cocktails (or coqtails) and choose from a list of top gins.

Our starters were their tasty cool Nachos (with shredded beef added) and the Coqbull Wings with their Blas gold award winning Sticky Asian sauce, a delicious combination. We avoided the Hot Coq sauce though, too hot for chickens they said.

Sipping away at a glass of their lager (CL) and a can of the Metalman Wheat beer, we moved on to the main event. My choice was the most popular burger of the week, and likely to make it on to main menu sometime soon, the Bacon Bomb: double cheese, double beef bacon infused burger, caramelised onion & pickles wrapped in a potato bread bun...served with our FAT BASTARD WEDGES smothered in our new Coqbull secret seasoning. A mega feed for sure, great flavour, especially of the bacon, and that potato bread bun wasn't half-bad either.

CL’s choice was another festival favourite here, the Supreme Bull with blue cheese, bone marrow butter, portobello mushroom, truffle mayonnaise and rocket.

Another interesting one, especially on the Thursday when they had the Cork Whiskey Society in for a Scotch tasting, was The Sloppy Scot, made using the best of Haggis from Mc Carthy's of Kanturk, Beef, Ballymaloe Country Relish, rocket and a whiskey pepper sauce served with neeps and tatties. 

So that was the burger done. Earlier, we had the bubbles, as an aperitivo. Every Friday, L’Atitude 51 on Union Quay have a Friday Fizz between 4.00pm and 7.00pm, featuring a different fizz each time. Last Friday’s was La Jara Rosato Frizzante - a semi-sparkling wine made from red Raboso with a delicate pink colour and wonderfully fresh aromas of red apple and raspberry and juicy peach and pear flavours. It was every bit as delicious as they promised on Facebook, really good and good value too at €5.50 a glass. Watch out for future Fizz Fridays.

Indeed, if you like your bubbles, why not check out the Imperial Hotel too. In their Seventy Six Bar, they are offering a champagne flight, three Taittinger champagnes including a rosé, at a special price of fifteen euro.

After stuffing ourselves at Coqbull, we walked out into heavy rain, heavy enough to halt our planned walk to the beer festival at Franciscan Well. Instead we headed closer to home and, with the brolly up, made it to the new Bridge Bar in Bridge Street where the counter was full and there was live music from the O.C.D. trio. Food (charcuterie and cheese) also available here.

Great to see a long line-up of craft beers here, available on draft. We ended up comparing two ales, one from Yellow Belly, the other from Beavertown. Two excellent ales. The Wexford drink had attractive aromas and flavours and the expected hoppy finish. Beavertown is a London Brewery and their ale was possibly more focussed, a brewer’s beer maybe. Not much between them in any case. May have to go back for a replay.

Lager (left), Red Ale (right). But what's in the middle? The Bridge Bar.

May have to go back for a gin and tonic adventure too. That could take a while though. This is their long long list.

BLACKS OF KINSALE 7.25

BERTHAS REVENGE 6.50

MARTIN MILLERS 6.50

KINSALE GIN 6.70

BLACK WATER 6.10

MONKEY 47 10.10

QUINCE GIN 6.50

SHORTCROSS 6.80

BROCKMANS 6.80

GUNPOWDER 6.10

BEEFEATER 5.10

HENDRICKS 6.10

SIPSMITH 6.80

CORK DRY 4.80 

CAORUNN 7.00

BOMBAY 5.50

DINGLE 6.50

UNGAVA 6.50

JAWBOX 6.50

BLOOM 6.20

OPIHR 6.00