It is a lovely day for a…Budweiser?
One does tire a bit of Guinness if you drink it almost every day for three weeks in a row, so I was excited to try an Irish microbrew at a gastropub we visited in Dublin. There is where I had my first Hooker. Galway Hooker is a pale ale that is in serious contention to be one of my favorite beers of all time. Unfortunately for me, it is only brewed in small quantities and served on draft in a couple of pubs in Ireland only.
While I didn’t think that the Irish drank Guinness ALL of the time, it never occurred to me that it wouldn’t be what the Irish drank MOST of the time. It didn’t take us too long to notice that Guinness was not the only drink that people were drinking. With due apologies to the Coors-loving Texan we met in Gort, Ireland, we were horrified that American beer-flavored water was often featured on tap. With some many delicious Irish beers, we weren’t sure why the Irish felt the need to stray. Everywhere you went, Budweiser had big ads about its ice cold beer chilled below zero. If the best thing you can say about your beer is that it needs to be below freezing to make it taste okay, pardon me if I don’t rush to the bar to try some. Strangely, we noticed the ads for Harp featuring the ice chilled temperature as its selling point. I tried a Harp and was disappointed. I’m not sure if it tastes better at home in relation to other options, or if the beer is formulated differently, or if it has been a long time since I had a Harp, but it was not great. Besides Guinness, Smithwick’s is featured on almost every tap. Our friend Matt is fond of Kilkenny, and we saw that from time to time. But what people were drinking most frequently was Carlsburg, a mild Danish lager, or, gasp, Budweiser.
We decided to get to the bottom of the Irish beer drinking habits by quizzing the bartender at the gastropub in Dublin. Dave, the bartender, told us that Guinness is no longer the most popular beer in Ireland, and that young people don’t drink Guinness. He said that the only people who drink Guinness in Ireland are the older people and the tourists. He said no one drinks Harp or Kilkenny, and that most people drink Carlsburg or some other lager. According to Dave, Guinness is developing a lighter lager to try to recapture some of the market. He said that Ireland used to have lots of microbrews, but the Queen got rid of most of them. Now, the microbrews are trying to make a comeback.
I know. It was a shock to me, too. I mean, we are talking about a country where every – and I mean EVERY – pub has a Guinness sign out front. A city that has a bridge devoted to Guinness. Now, we decided to take Dave’s insight as a grain of salt. This is coming from one person, who happens to be a bartender in a bar featuring microbrews. On top of that, we weren’t sure whether to trust Dave or not.
We were staying in the rowdy Temple Bar section. While it was filled with pubs, most of the people frequenting them were either tourists or college students. So we asked for recommendations for a place where he and other locals would go out. Dave directed us to several bars on a street far away from the touristy center. The first bar was packed to the gills with very, very drunk college students. It was loud and obnoxious and reminiscent of the bars in the Temple Bar, except substitute annoying American music like Kid Rock for traditional Irish bands catering to tourists. We stayed for one beer, but left after a guy started throwing up at the table beside us.
Thus began a debate amongst us: was Dave messing with us by sending us to that bar? You see, he had told us that when English tourists inquired where to go out for good night life, they always sent them to the gay bars as a joke. The bar seemed at odds with his laid-back nature and his Ipod-playlist playing over the loudspeakers at the gastropub. Was this a joke on us? Is this where he sends Americans for a laugh?
We’ll never know, but the countervailing argument was that the single members of our group had inquired about the best place to meet Irish ladies and one could have their pick of drunken women at that bar. And the second bar he recommended was much more a speed: laid-back, good tunes, and not crowded. The two bars did have something in common though: practically the only ones drinking Guinness in either one was us.
After leaving Dublin, I kept my eye out. And I’d have to say Dave knew what he was talking about. While the old-timers still savored a pint of the black stuff, most people, particularly younger people, seemed to drink lagers and ciders. When quizzed about Irish drinking habits, other people concurred that Guinness is not as popular anymore and not the “cool” thing to drink. Some said it is too heavy; some said they only drink it in winter (as if there is a difference between the summer weather we experienced). According to The Internet, Guinness still is the number one selling beer in Ireland, but its market share has been decreasing over the years.
Even if everyone in Ireland does not love Guinness, I still do.
Everything you wanted to know about Irish beer, and then some:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guinness
http://www.europeanbeerguide.net/irlbrew.htm
http://www.bootsnall.com/articles/08-08/best-selling-beers-around-the-world.html
The pictures I wish we would have gotten:
Dave the hot bartender
The crazy Texan we offended with our budweiser comment.
Locals drinking cider.
The wildlife at the “college” bar.
The crazy 80’s outfits worn by ALL!!!
I think we should start a campaign to bring back Guinness. Starting with me heading out to purchase several cases for quick consumption.