Blog O'Live A Little...Marinating on Eats, Olive Oil & Travel

In 1759, Arthur Guinness must have been bursting with confidence and optimism when he signed a 9000 year lease (that is not typo!), for the St. James Gate Brewery in Dublin. With an annual rent of 45 pounds that was fixed for the life of the lease, in the 1770’s he began brewing a porter style beer we all know as Guinness. It was so successful that in 1799 he stopped production of other beer styles and focused solely on porter. This lease also gave him a free water supply to make his beer. Today the Guinness factory makes three million pints a day using springwater from the nearby Wicklow Mountains which flows to the River Liffey which runs through Dublin.

Before anyone knew the word “Covid”, my husband Matthew, myself and our good friends Steve and Bonnie took a trip to Ireland. We flew into Dublin, got our car, and headed out for a week of countryside exploration. We ended up back in Dublin for two nights to do a bit of exploring before heading home. What does one do when in Dublin? Take the Guinness Tour of course!

Offering full disclosure, I was not overly excited about going on the Guinness Tour. A brewery tour… meh… I can take it or leave it. Well, this wine drinking girl can attest that the tour was amazing! It was so well done and informative with lots of history and interesting artifacts to look at. And, of course at the end of the tour we went to the Gravity Bar at the top of the factory complex, enjoyed a few pints of Guinness and the 360 degree views of Dublin. If you are in Dublin, you must take the tour!

Being in Ireland and not drinking Guinness almost seems sacrilegious. So, we did do our fair share of draught Guinness consumption while visiting the many pubs we encountered along the way. And, again full disclosure, I had never had a Guinness before going to Ireland (Yikes!). If you have never had one, you must try one. It is malty, with a hint of sweet, toasty with flavors of chocolate and coffee. And, don’t let it’s dark color fool you, it is surprisingly light, not what you would expect. Now, I’m still a wine drinker, but do enjoy Guinness on occasion and there is no better occasion in the USA than March 17th, St Patrick’s Day.

 

 

Make sure you pick up a six pack of Guinness for the big day, or better yet find a good pub where you can get one on draught… it’s really how it should be enjoyed. And, if your so inclined, make our O’Live A Little Chocolate Guinness Cake to share with friends on March 17th too! The coffee-chocolate flavor does amazing things for the cake!

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Written by Jennifer Ostrowski

Comments

I’m Lew and I’m British and I love Poles, particularly two I can think of !

Lew on Jul 14, 2022

Oh yeah, I’m making it this weekend !

Tracey Ward on Jul 14, 2022

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