I have always loved New Year’s Eve and its invitation to draw a line under the past and take a new step into what is to come. I don’t really care how I spend it. I’ve enjoyed quiet, contemplative ones in my own company as much as loud ones under glitter balls.
I worked as a waiter and was served by gracious hosts. One was spent alone on a (happily affordable) return flight from Australia, slowly moving through the long night as time zones merged. The most important thing for me is to somehow mark it, no matter how small or quiet or big and bold. Luckily, there’s brilliant Irish beer to mark the occasion, whether you choose to be in contemplation or in company, on a dance floor or at the dinner table.
We’ve come a long way in our craft beer scene and we really are spoiled for choice. For today’s round-up, I’ve chosen beers that are relatively accessible while also nodding to the excitement one finds in having more time to hunt down good beer in special off-licenses or via multiple online retailers across the country Delivery.
Some of our finest breweries are now stocking their core range across multiple retailers, with Kinnegar being a personal favourite. I captured her Scraggy Bay here today; As an introduction to the enduring excellence of their range, this widely acclaimed flagship IPA is a great place to start. I also love the spicy pizzazz of their Rustbucket Rye IPA, while their lighter ABV little sister, the Bucket and Spade, joins some of their more edible beers.
If you want something sedentary to drink into the wee hours of 2023, there’s a growing selection that won’t fool the taste buds. Alongside the Ballykilcavan Millhouse IPA and Kinnegar’s option above, Dot Brew’s Loose Session IPA (3.5 pc) is a complex Quaffer with bold tropical fruit, salted citrus and a savory herbal character, while the Eden Session IPA (3.8 pc pc) by Wicklow Wolf is a crowd puller. Kinnegar’s Low Tide Low-Alcohol Pale Ale at 1% ABV takes things to a satisfying extreme, while their delicious new Winterland 2022 Imperial Coconut Stout (9% ABV) takes it to the other extreme.
My beer of the week is also a Slow Sipper: from a Dublin 8-based gypsy brewery, where brewer Shane Kelly uses his cask collection as a spice rack for aging creations like this Imperial Stout Potstill or his Rum Red Dark series. Hope Beer’s Winterporter is a collaboration with brewmaster Christoph Lippert-Pagany of Caspary GMBH & Co, who built his brewhouse in Howth in 2016, and Cúl Dorcha is a dark ale named after a beach on the Dingle Peninsula. And where better to greet 2023?
beer of the week
Dot Brew Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout Potstill, Dublin
12 pieces, 7€-7.35€ (44cl)
From the Irish pioneers of cask-aged craft beer, this powerful Imperial Stout has spent 11 months in French and American oak casks and Irish potstill casks. The rich result is brilliantly balanced, retaining clear and bright notes of fruity spice to accentuate the luscious layers of dark and milk chocolate. Loves a sipper if one goes down very easily, to be enjoyed with or in place of desserts. Try chocolate ganache or brownies or salty blue cheese.
Select independent companies including Sweeney’s, Martins, Stephen street
News, craftcentral.ie
Kinnegar Scraggy Bay IPA, Co Donegal
5.3 pieces, €3-€3.50 (44cl cans or 50cl bottles)
Winner of a prestigious European Beer Awards Gold Star (2022), this is bountiful, smooth and clean with a core hop character of tropical fruit and citrus balanced by subtle pine hops, warm Rich Tea malts and a juicy but balanced finish that unfolds can pair with a range of food flavors.
Widely used in Independent, SuperValu, Tesco, O’Briens, craftbeersdelivered.com
Ballykilcavan Millhouse IPA, Stradbally, Co Laois
3.5 pieces, €3.50 (44cl)
Double dry-hopping, this low-alcohol IPA is a great example of session-friendly options that don’t compromise on flavor, offer stone fruit and lemon leaf flavors, and are light and easy to drink with hints of bitter, earthy hops for a refreshing finish.
Select Independents, SuperValu, Molloy’s, Next Door, Carry Out (cf ballykilcavan.com/stockists)
Hope Beer Dublin Porter Seasonal Brew
6 pieces, €3.50 (44cl)
A versatile, complex porter (think charred smoked meat in fermented soy, dark roast coffee and toffee) that’s light and easy to drink with a refreshing bitter note of English Fuggle hops. Enjoy it alone or in combination with smoked duck, venison rubbed with coffee or sweet and spicy umami dishes.
Selected independents including Stephen Street News, craftcentral.ie, thebeerclub.ie
Beoir Chorca Dhuibhne (West Kerry Brewery) Cúl Dorcha
5 pieces, 4€-4.80€ (50cl)
A woolly embrace of a dark ale with dark, malty flavors of liquorice, muscovado, dried fruit and caramelized flesh, it’s smooth, nutty and subtly sweet, but finishes dry thanks to traditional English hops. Goes well with stews with rib sticks and slow-cooked meat.
Select independent companies such as Drinkstore, Garvey’s SuperValu, westkerrybrewery.ie
https://www.independent.ie/life/food-drink/see-in-the-new-year-with-a-fine-choice-of-irish-beer-42249934.html Ring in the new year with a fine selection of Irish beers
