A Quart of Ale± #103. On the craft journey with a trio of beauties: Hope, Wicklow Wolf, Whiplash.

 A Quart of Ale± #103

On the craft journey with a trio of beauties: Hope, Wicklow Wolf, Whiplash.

Hope Limited Edition 26 Born To Be Free Amber Lager 5.5%, 440ml can Bradleys

Amber lagers have become the centrepiece of the world’s most famous harvest festival, a beer of celebration. So says The Beer Bible. Author Jeff Alworth is talking about Oktoberfest in Munich and in other cities. And number one of his Beers to Know for this annual fest is none other than Paulaner Oktoberfest. Pilsner and Munich are the malts while the hops are Herkules, Hallertauer Tradition; ABV is 5.8 while IBU is 20. 

The only Amber Lager I have this evening is this Hope Limited Edition. Let’s get it (the lederhosen) on. This, the beer not the short pants, has a lovely amber colour with an off-white head that sinks away slowly. There’s a spicy and floral aroma with fruity notes. There’s an inviting melange of toffee and caramel on the palate but well balanced by slight bittering from the hops, both American. One is Cluster, once the most widely grown hop in the US and a great choice for lagers. Amazing how well it all comes together, very impressive indeed. No crowded tent but applause of two hands clapping.

They say:  Our first Limited Edition of 2022 is an amber lager with a malty medium body. The beer is a throwback to some of the popular American beers before the craft beer boom of the 80s and 90s. A descendant of the Vienna Lager style,…. The body is lightened somewhat by the addition of flaked corn to the grain bill….

The beer is brewed using the extremely traditional European mashing technique of double decoction, which intensifies both the colour and the malt flavour.”

Geeks Bits:

Hops: Cascade, Cluster (IBU: 25

Malts: Lager, Munich, English Crystal

Serve: 6-9 degrees.

Wicklow Wolf Far Far Away NZ Indian Pale Ale 6.0%, 440ml can Bradleys

Introducing our latest Endangered Species release - 'Far Far Away'. A beer we have been planning to brew for over a year, following on from our Endangered Species No. 15, Somewhere Far Away.

The colour of this Far Far Away, #26 in the series, is a muddied orange, with a white head that doesn’t hang about, at all. Aromas of this New Zealand India Pale Ale are at once homely (gooseberry) and exotic (passionfruit). 

They mention two super fresh New Zealand hops and in fairness, and to my delight, it is indeed fresh as if just pulled at a bar. Again the fruit flavours dominate the palate, citrus along with the gooseberry and passionfruit, floral hints too. And those generous soft fruits take us smoothly on to a very satisfactory and hoppy finish.

The Wolf team tell us: "Fermenting at a warmer temperature and with the ale yeast has amplified and added to the hop aromas and flavours as well as the body of the beer. Sit back and enjoy this one while thinking of somewhere far far away.” Not too difficult at all!

One of the brewers is a Kiwi. “The brainchild of our brewers coming together, this is an IPA that champions two super fresh New Zealand hops, Nelson Sauvin and Motueka. Two bountiful dry hop additions allow these hops come to the forefront of the beer bringing a burst of soft fruits, grape, gooseberry and floral hints.”

Whiplash Melted Roggenbier 5.4%, 440ml can Bradleys

This Roggenbier is the latest in the Whiplash lager series and “is a big, huge rye affair”. Colour is an eye-catching copper with a soft off-white head that flops down quickly enough but then hangs about. Aromas give off a slight spice and some fresh crusty bread. It is soft and smooth on the palate, where the rye is a major actor, before exiting with an assertive bitterness.

CraftBeer.com says: “Roggenbier is a message in a bottle, timelessness in a glass—and I suggest you try one.” Why not start with this Whiplash effort.

Whiplash themselves certainly took to it in a big way: “Just look at that copper colour…..It definitely leaves us wanting another sip. Melted was a huge hit at our weekly team tasting, thanks to Enric for putting it top of his ‘to brew’ list!” And the plan became a reality when the Dublin brewery launched it last March.

Geek Bits

Vienna Malt

Rye Malt

Crystal Rye

Caramel Aromatic

Magnum (cedar pepper resin)

Hersbrucker (grass tobacco bergamot)

WLP833

Launched: March 2022

Crew in Limerick have a mighty May lined up!

Street Food Sundays

Every Sunday, 1pm to 9pm

Street Food Sundays are still curing us of the weekend’s antics, so in May we’ll continue to collaborate with our friends at Street Food Done Good at Wickham Way to bring you the best global street eats paired with fresh local beer. Every Sunday, from 1pm to 9pm, we are offering any dish from Street Food Done Good and any Crew brew for 12. Just let us know your food order at the bar! This month, Street Food Done Good are treating us to Portuguese dishes.  Their full menus (and recipe cards from previous months) are available on Instagram @streetfooddonegood.

To celebrate Indie Beer Week at the end of May, we have something exciting in the works. In collaboration with Street Food Done Good, we’ll be hosting a beer and food pairing evening here at Crew! There will be more details to follow on our social media channels, but for now, keep the 31^st of May free.

Barnabrow House: Splendid Sunday Lunch

Barnabrow House 

Splendid Sunday Lunch

I was glad to hear that Sunday Lunch had resumed in Barnabrow and great too to find out recently (24.04.22) that the standard is as high as ever. It is all quite the occasion, the well coordinated confluence of excellent staff, top notch produce and a skilful kitchen, all combining to serve up a leisurely lunch of three courses plus tea or coffee (with petit fours).

Barnabrow means "Top of the Fairy Fort” and reigned over by the Fairy of Cloyne. Now, thanks to the magic, not to mention the hard work, of owner Geraldine Kidd who has been restoring and developing the ancient house and its surrounding acres over the past 26 years, Barnabrow stands strong and ready to serve again following the Covid 19 onslaught.

After working in London, Geraldine came to visit Ballymaloe (next door to Barnabrow), saw the melons growing in the greenhouse, "an epiphany moment",  and signed up for a three months course. 

She added to her cooking experience with a stint in the Arbutus and also worked with Denis Cotter of Café Paradiso and also in Midleton’s Farmgate. She bought Barnabrow in the mid 90s. It has proved very popular as a wedding venue.

Sunday lunch is not the only sign that the big house is finding its place in the East Cork food diary again. Back in September, Geraldine welcomed a group to the opening of her Tea Rooms in the main house. Here, customers now enjoy Afternoon Tea and there’s also the option of a light lunch. Check out the details here. 

The Sunday Lunch venue is in the main restaurant. This church-like building stands alone and is also used for the wedding receptions for which the house is quite well-known. 

After a warm welcome, we started to study the menu as we nibbled on some of their lovely breads. I got off to a terrific start with my Oak Smoked Salmon with roast beetroot, wasabi cream and a poppy seed Dorito. A really superb opener, the salmon excellent, even the beetroot, from their own garden, was magnificent.

CL meanwhile was happily engaged with her Clonakilty Black Pudding Salad with green apple, Feta, crispy potatoes and spiced tomato dressing. Quite a lot going on there but all in delicious harmony. Also available were Ardsallagh Goats Cheese (with confit red onion and Kalamata Olive tapenade, hazelnuts) and a Tomato and Roast Red Pepper Soup with Toasted Almonds. 

As you see, local producers are well supported and that continued into the mains. Mine was magnificent: Roast Striploin of O’Connell’s Beef, truffle potato, ragout of Ballyhoura Mushrooms and shallots, and a red wine jus. The beef was perfect, tender and so well cooked, and enhanced no end by a notable jus. A compelling combination.

Pan roast supreme of chicken was CL’s choice and that came with Chive mash, Cannellini Beans, Chorizo cassoulet and Port reduction. Quite a chicken dish, well executed and, like mine, accompanied by a packed dish of roasties and root vegetables (all nicely cooked, not too soft, not too hard). There was also a fish option and a veggie option of a Wild Mushroom Ragout.

The finalé wasn’t half bad. We enjoyed a Lemon Tart with Raspberry Coulis and also Chocolate Marquise, spiced oranges and crystallised nuts before finishing off with Bewley's coffee (Barry’s tea was also an option) and Petit Fours.

Kids are often at Sunday lunches and here they may have half portions of the adult dishes plus a few other options. For the big boys and girls, there is a short list of red and white wines.

Geraldine likes nothing better than to see her guests stroll around the grounds and meet the other inhabitants. The donkeys have long been popular here but it seems the friendly pygmy goats (relatively recently introduced) are now getting a lot of attention. Enjoy your food and the visit.

Barnabrow is on the Shanagarry Road out of Cloyne, about ten minutes from the Lakeview roundabout on the N25 at Midleton. More here. 

A Local and Multinational Feast at Cork's Marina Market

A Local and Multinational Feast

 at Cork's Marina Market

Taylor's New Jersey Roll

You walk past a tall concrete silo into an old warehouse on Cork Docklands. The area has seen better days but rarely better food. 

For this warehouse is full of food stalls and is the base of the thriving Marina Market where influences from as far away as Brazil and Sicily, from East Coast US and Korea, are seen at their delicious best in a variety of dishes, big and small. Of course there is a large local input too, beef from Tom Durcan and spuds in many guises by Prátaí for example.

Languages galore as well. Aside from the spuds,here are a few random samples from the menus: Nua Asador, Fusilli Amatriciana, Latke, Carnitas, Funky Shoom, Koreole, and more. Might have to re-christen that silo Tower of Babel. But you don’t have to worry about the languages. Just get the food into your mouth where no translation is needed! And enjoy.

Picanha Steak by Nua Asador

I started this visit with a call to two stalls from the many that were operating in midweek. First up was the Nua Asador looking rather splendid with the wood fire blazing away in the rear, the whole operation lit by vintage lights (by James Gibbons Electrical). 

Here Chef Victor Franca, in partnership with Tom Durcan Meats, serves up, without gas or electricity, the best of Irish beef in a Brazilian style. You’ll also get chicken and pork here and there’s a daily special. They are open Mon - Sun from 12pm.

The menu appears on a long board, you give your order, pay and then wait for a few minutes for it to be cooked. I couldn’t resist the Picanha Steak with sourdough bread, grilled baby potatoes, chargrilled onions, Farofa, and Chimichurri Sauce (13.00).

Dine out

This is a tender traditional Brazilian rump cut steak, served in a cardboard container on a bed of potatoes, a generous amount of the sauce and that tasty Farofa (a traditional Brazilian side dish made with toasted yuca flour/cassava flour). The steak is a winner for sure and very highly recommended. It reminded me of a phrase from James Joyce in Portrait of a Young Man: "Stuff it into you, his belly counselled him." 

Must call back soon to try some of the other items on the menu. And the same goes for our other call, that to is to Taylor’s of Cork, specialising in New Jersey Rolls, New York Subs and Latke Dishes. Latke are little pancakes with a huge tradition - I'll be checking them out next time.

This time we picked the most popular dish of the day, one of the New Jersey rolls, this called “Make it Rain”. For €8.00 you get Taylor’s Bacon slices, Latke, Cheese, Fried Egg and House Hot Sauce (other sauce options available). The fried egg by the way is runny in all three Jersey Rolls, the others called Sight for Sore Eyes and Lord I’ve Been Changed.

A superb lunch feed, made even better by the fact that we could eat outside in the hot April sun; full of flavour and textures and very enjoyable, even with the messy egg! Taylor's Deli at the market is open seven days a week from 9.00am.

Plenty of soft drinks and water available at the various stalls which also include Sicilian Delights, Prátaí, Poulet Vous, Burritos & Blues, Alchemy for coffee and bites, and many more. There’s even a baby shop here. And you may also get your hair cut. Many reasons to go back to the Marina Market.

Dine in

2022 Beer of the Year

2022 Beer of the Year 

Confirmed to date

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 April (Short list)

Pils: Whiplash True Love Waits Dry Hopped Pils

Pale Ale: Wicklow Wolf Tundra Tropical Pale Ale

Brown Ale: Whiplash Smoke Stack Lightnin’ Oaked & Smoked

Gose: Dot Brew When the Going Gets Gose

Session: Boundary Love is Here Hoppy Table Beer Pale Ale 2.6%

Ciders to note: Killahora Bottle Conditioned Dry Bittersweet Cider 2019, 5.9%, 750ml (champagne style) bottle Longueville House Cider 5.9%; Longways Medium Sweet Elderflower Cider.

Best of March (short list)

Schwarzbier: Lineman Schadenfreude Schwarzbier 5.9%

IPA: Boundary Inefficient Knowledge IPA 6%;

Weizenbock:Whitefield The Viscount Weizenbock 7.5% 

Pale Ale: Third Barrel Shut Up Juice

Black IPA: Rascals Rude Girl Black IPA

Session: Boundary Trees We Didn’t Plant Pale Ale 4.0%

Best of February 2022 Short List

Oatmeal Stout: Wicklow Wolf  “Apex Cherry” Black Cherry 

BA Stout: Bradleys & Dot Brew Shady Dealings

Milk Stout: Trouble Brewing Nocturne Milk Stout

IPA: Killarney Scarlet Pimpernel

Smoked Porter: Whitefield Old Smoke Smoked Porter; 

Porter: Clonakilty Smuggler Irish Porter. 

Bitter: West Cork Baltimore Bitter

Session: Blacks The Session Pink Grapefruit IPA 3.4%

Rye IPA: Wicklow Wolf Canis Rufus

Dark Lager: Whitefield Ivy Hall

Gold Lager: Whiplash Dawn Chorus Helles. 

Best of January 2022 Short List

Dark Lager: Whiplash Dry the Rain Double Decoction Dunkel

Oats IPA: Hope Overnight Oats IPA.

Session IPA: Porterhouse Sundown Session IPA

American Pale Ale: O Brother The Chancer APA

Barleywine: Brehon Brewhouse Red Right Hand Barley Wine Beer

NEIPA: Porterhouse Renegade New England IPA

Stout: West Cork Stout X Stout West

Blonde: Killarney Golden Spear Blonde

Best of December (2021, for 2022) Short List

Brown Ale: Lough Gill Mac Nutty Macadamia Nut.

Single Hop IPA: Eight Degrees Citra Single Hop IPA 5.7%

Cask-Aged Porter: Brehon Brewhouse Shanco Dubh Porter 8.8%

Coffee & Oatmeal Stout: Third Circle Shot In The Dark

Pale Ale: Lineman Fluid Dynamic Extra Pale Ale.

Single Malt IPA: Eight Degrees Full Irish 6.0%

Session: Whitefield Brewery “Woodville” Session Pale Ale 4.3%

Lager: Whiplash Das Model. 

Spike Island. A great day out. So much to see and do

 Spike Island. A great day out. So much to see and do

Mitchel Hall, all so peaceful today

It was much different on a hot August night in 1985

Spike had by then become known as the joyriders prison. It was the place where young car hi-jackers were sent to serve out mostly short sentences, not just joyriders by the way.

The prison burst onto the TV screens and newspaper front pages in the summer of 1985 when the prisoners rioted. Not that there was anything much different as the prisoners  returned to their dorms for the night, all was calm.  But an argument quickly escalated and suddenly the prisoners were escaping from their dorms in numbers.  A major riot was underway, and the prison would never be the same again. 

One of the exhibits: an improvised petrol bomb in a Bo-Peep jam jar.

The Spike Island website recalls the prisoners set fire to buildings and armed themselves, and with over a hundred prisoners this was a deadly scenario. The riot continued for hours before the prisoners climbed on top of the fort's 'Mitchel Hall', where they remained for most of the next day. For more details, click here.

The riot led to the construction of formal 4 man prison cells in the 'C' class block, which remained in use until 2004 and can be seen by visitors today.  Visitors can also see the 'Riot exhibition', which tells the story. Be sure and check out the RTE video footage.

A 7-inch Rifled Muzzle Loading Cannon at the Gun Park

The 7” RML above represents the progression of artillery technology, with the introduction of rifling grooves cut into the barrel to impart spin and stability to the shell while in flight. Dating from 1865, three of these massive 7” guns were mounted on Spike Island, one on each of the three bastions facing Cobh. The introduction of breech loaded guns rendered them obsolete.

It is one of several interesting artillery pieces in the covered Gun Park on Spike spanning over 300 years of warfare. More here.

 The three Cork harbour forts have had a tough morning. And it’s about to get a whole lot tougher.

But, just for the moment, the gun crew in Bastion 2 on Spike Island are feeling happy with themselves. Their six inch monster (above) has done the business, sending its massive shell out beyond Roche’s Point to sink the biggest of the attacking ships. “Poor buggers,” sympathised one gunner as he saw the flames rise before the vessel sank.

Soon though, the guys on Spike would be the poor buggers. A flight of Nazi bombers came swooping over the hill in Cobh, over the famed cathedral, and dropped bomb after bomb into the sunken fort at the top of the island. All hell broke loose! 

Not really😉. Just one of those “what if” moments that comes up during a tour of Spike Island.  What if the British hadn't been so prompt in handing back the treaty ports, including Spike, just a year before WW11 began?

You can visit that gun today and see what the gunners would have seen (on a good day!): the mouth of the harbour, Camden Fort Meagher to their right, Fort Carlyle to the left. The gun by the way was never fired in anger.

Our Visit

Spike Island tours depart  from Kennedy Quay in Cobh. We took the 11.00am ferry, best to book in advance particularly in high season. The trip takes between ten and twenty minutes. There is a famous sandbank between Cobh and the island, a sandbank that Queen Victoria’s ship got stuck on when she visited. When the tide is in, the ferry goes over the sandbank but when the water is low, the ferry has to circle Haulbowline Island before landing on Spike.

There is a café on Spike, though it was closed on the day we were there.

You are offered a guided tour on arrival. It costs nothing extra, so do take it. You will have over three hours here - sounds a lot but it may not be enough time, there is so much to see and do. The tour takes less than an hour and is well worth it. The guides are well informed, very helpful indeed. They’ll process you (you are after all their prisoner but you may smile as your mug shot is taken) and they will point out all the things you may visit by following the yellow arrows. And, like our man Rob, they'll pop up every now and then with helpful hints.

Wrecked in the riot

One of the highlights is the Glacis Walk. This goes around the outside perimeter of the fort, is 1.4 km long, and there are information panels on the way. Great views of the harbour here, both inner and outer. And you are left in no doubt how these big guns could control who was allowed in.

Wonder Polaris arrives at Whitegate Oil Refinery, just off Spike

There are other walks, including one down to a group of derelict houses, known as the village. Our guide told us there were always civilians on the island. But that ended after the riot of 1985 when the prisoners marched down to the houses. The civilians eventually all moved out as a result, most of them to nearby Cobh. None of the civilians were injured in the riot as both they and the prisoners agreed that there was no issue between them.

There are trails and interest points all around the island. The most interesting spots within the fort itself are: 1 - 1850s Punishment Block; 2 - Children's Prison; 3 - Bastion 6 and its views to Cobh; 4 - the Café; 5 - Artillery Gun Park; 6 - Independence Exhibition; 7 - Mitchel Hall; 8 - Bastion 3 (harbour views); 9 - Bastion 2 Coastal Defence Gun; 10 - 1985 Riot Exhibition; 11 - 1985 Cells; 12 - Former visitors waiting room.  You may read more, much more, about Spike Island's varied history and its many attractions here. 

Cobh's Colourful Houses

(as seen from Spike)

Old Cork in Colour

Old Cork in Colour is the title of the main exhibition now running  in Mitchel Hall. John Breslin & Sarah-Anne Buckley, who brought you the books titled Old Ireland in Colour, here bring to life the rich history of Cork and its people and its visitors through the colour restoration of these stunning images of local life and death throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

The few dozen varied photos include the last known picture of Michael Collins taken in Bandon shortly before his death. There's a striking mugshot of Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa and no less than 10 colourised images of life on Spike Island itself. Pictures too that recall tragedies such as the sinking of the Lusitania, Then there's the guy with a hurley (that looks a lot like the "crook' that we used to fashion when we had no caman).

The exhibition, curated by Dorota Gubbins, was launched on the 12th of April and is on display in Mitchel Hall until November 2022.