Beer of the week. Sullivan’s Maltings Irish Ale

 Sullivan’s Maltings Irish Ale, 5% ABV, 

500 ml bottle, O’Donovan’s

Beer of the week!

Check our updated Beer of the Week Index here

“Traditionally brewed with only Kilkenny-grown ale malt, including three special darker malts and three varieties of hop.”

And those darker malts give it a much darker colour than your normal red ale. In a certain light, the deep red looks much like black. Darkness notwithstanding, the Maltings has an attractive lightness about it on the palate.

. The brewers continue: Fermented and matured with cask ale yeast and coupled with our no-rush brewing produces a smooth balanced classic ale. .. the result is a classic ruby ale with deep malt combining rich biscuit and gentle caramel notes.”

The aroma hints of a balance between malt fruit and hop bitterness and that continues on the body before the excellent well-balanced ale finishes dry. Quite a satisfactory bottle indeed and the drinker can see why this easy-drinking smooth ale is an award winner.

And it gets a major thumbs up here, not for the first time. Very Highly Recommended. Beer of the Week!

Sullivan’s were originally established in 1792 but lost their independence in 1918, thanks to a reckless wager. The story played out in Deauville, then a long-time magnet for Europe’s rich and famous. The exclusive seaside resort was all abuzz for the horseracing in August 1918, even though the Great War was still being waged. 

One Irishman had set his sights on an aristocratic French "fillé". He had opposition from a Venetian count. Sullivan, a gambler rather than a brewer, bet the family brewery on a horse to impress the Frenchwoman. He lost and, not fancying a duel with the count, had to settle his debts.

In Kilkenny, as a result of the wager, the Sullivan brewery (established eight years before Smithwick’s) was taken over by their rivals (“in a kind of a white knight rescue”) and the Sullivan name vanished from the enterprise. Another hundred years on and, in 2014, Diageo moved the production of Smithwick's to Dublin.

But the Sullivan story has been revived over the past few years or so with the emergence of a new Sullivan brewery, backed by the two intertwined families, the Sullivans and, yes, the Smithwicks, both keen to keep Kilkenny’s brewing tradition going. 

CorkBillyBeers #34. Craft Pale Ale with Wicklow Wolf, Whiplash, Lineman, Sullivan's

CorkBillyBeers #34

In the wild: Elevation at Lynam's Laragh

Craft Pale Ale with Wicklow Wolf, Whiplash, Lineman, Sullivan's 

 

******************

Wicklow Wolf Elevation Pale Ale, 4.8%, 440ml can SuperValu Mayfield

Golden Pineapple Delight

This light gold, slightly hazy beer pours with a mild hoppy aroma. The first sip reveals juicy pineapple flavours that lead to a moderate, yet noticeable, hop bitterness. The bitterness is balanced by the sweetness of the pineapple, making for a very refreshing and easy-drinking beer.

This beer is a sessionable crowd-pleaser, and it's no wonder that it's the brewery's best-seller. You'll have no trouble finding a can of this beer, and it's easy to find on draught in its home county.

A Beer for All Occasions

This beer is perfect for any occasion. It's light enough to enjoy on a hot day, but it's also flavourful enough to pair with a meal. Whether you're having a barbecue with friends or just relaxing at home, it is a banker.

This refreshing and flavourful beer is Very Highly Recommended.

They say: An incredibly drinkable Pale Ale bursting with juicy fruits of pineapple and grapefruit from an abundance of hop additions. Refreshing.

Geek Bits

Food pairings: roasted or grilled meat.

Cheese Mild or medium cheddar.

Serve at 8 degrees. It is unfiltered, unpasteurised and the IBU is 40.

Hops: Mosaic, Mandarina Bavaria, Calypso

Malt: Pale, Cara Ruby, Melano, Wheat.

****************** 

Whiplash Body Riddle Pale Ale 4.5% ABV, 330ml can, No 21 Coburg Street

Label Pic via Whiplash

A Citrusy Treat

The Whiplash Body Riddle Pale Ale is a light and hazy gold beer with a fluffy white head. The aroma is a blend of citrus fruits, with lemon, grapefruit, and orange leading the way. There are also hints of pine and herbs, which add a touch of complexity.

The flavour is even more citrus-forward than the aroma, with lemon and grapefruit dominating. There is also a touch of sweetness from the malt, which helps to balance out the bitterness from the hops. The finish is dry and refreshing, with a lingering citrusy flavour.

The Body Riddle Pale Ale is brewed with a blend of Lemondrop, Galaxy, Simcoe, and Ekuanot hops. These hops all contribute to the beer's citrusy flavour profile, while also adding a touch of bitterness and complexity.

This beer is perfect for a hot day or as a sessionable beer to enjoy with friends. It's also a great beer to pair with food, as the citrus flavours can complement a variety of dishes.

But don't worry. There’s more than citrus here with the other hops, Galaxy, Simcoe, and Ekuanot all getting into the action and helping in the balancing act.

Lots of hops but no domination - IBU is a very presentable 26 - making sure you get flavour galore without scaring away the newbies. Absolutely enjoyable, from start to finalé. Not too much more to say about this gem but, with me, that’s often a good sign. I’ve made up my mind early and the verdict is a major thumbs up for the little can. Best of goods in small parcels.

Very Highly Recommended. Good for a session too!

******************

Pic via
Sullivan's

Sullivan’s Pale Ale, 4.7%, 500ml bottle SuperValu Mayfield

They say: Fermented using our Sullivan’s yeast and our ‘No-Rush’ brewing process for a delicious, classic balance.

Complex, Refreshing!

This Kilkenny Pale Ale is a beer that defies expectations. The colour is more amber than gold, and the aromas are more resinous than citrus. The evergreen effect continues on the palate, with fruit flavours (peach, apricot) having a say, even a touch of marmalade. The malts are of course also in evidence, but they are not the star of the show.

This beer is complex and refreshing at the same time. The resinous hops provide a touch of bitterness, which is balanced by the sweetness of the malts. The fruit flavours add a touch of complexity, and the marmalade note gives the beer a unique flavour profile.

There's a lot to like about our Kilkenny Pale Ale. Very Highly Recommended 

Geek Bits

Traditionally brewed with Vienna and Pale Ale malts, chill-hopped with Amarillo hops.

Malts - Irish Ale, Vienna.

Hops - Magnum, Admiral, First Gold and AmarilloBrewery:

******************

Lineman Fluid Dynamic Extra PA 4.8% ABV, No 21 Coburg Street 

Mid gold is the colour of this Extra Pale Ale from Lineman, a beer that has been around for a while. It is slightly hazy but no problem in spotting the fountains of bubbles rising to the white head. Returning to a previous tasting, I’m glad to see I mentioned that it “could well have wide appeal”. 

Still going strong with citrus and pine in the aromas and with flavours from citrus to mango to pine with a peppermint hint thrown in for good measure on the palate.  Unpasteurised and unfiltered, the beer is a soft and pleasant one on the palate, brewed deliberately using barley and wheat malts to make it light and clean and let the hops take centerstage but without taking over.

It is named Fluid Dynamic and the hops chosen were the all-American trio of Citra, Idaho 7 and Chinook. They give it quite a supple touch yet it is well balanced with barley and wheat malt helping a light clean beer emerge that lets the hops shine through, a hefty drink to have in hand in the summer and autumn hours between sun and dark.

Very Highly Recommended.

.

A Quart of Ale± #130. On the craft journey with Third Barrel, Bradleys, Sullivan's, Wicklow Wolf, O'Shea's, Aldi, Bullhouse, Whiplash, Crew, Kinnegar,

 

A Quart of Ale± #130

On the craft journey with Third Barrel, Bradleys, Sullivan's, Wicklow Wolf, O'Shea's, Aldi, O'Briens, Bullhouse

Third Barrel Day Drinkin 111 Revenge of the Hops Session IPA, 4% ABV, 440 ml can Bradleys

Third Barrel are busy these days: “The UK are going through Prime Ministers like we go through beer specials..”

Like their previous two Day Drinkin beers, this Revenge of the Hops weighs in at just four per cent, and is aimed at the session drinker though I’m sure quite a few other beer drinkers would enjoy it.

It has a pale orange colour and it’s murky in there. The label “forecasts” aromas of grapefruit, raspberry and sweet candy. Grapefruit yes but I’ve found the others elusive! It is pretty big and bold in the mouth where the grapefruit also leads the refreshing charge along with peach and banana.

A duo of hops boot this on. One is HBC 630, an experimental hop from the Yakima Valley. It is recommended for Wheat Ale, Golden Ale, American style lagers, Pale Ales, India Pale Lager (IPL), India Pale Ale (IPA), Session IPA, New England IPA, Hazy IPA, Imperial IPA. The other hop listed is the well-known Mosaic, a contributor to the tropical notes. 

The carbon produced in the making of this beer has been offset by planting native Irish trees.

Our reviews on the other Day Drinkin beers

Part Deux Citra Strata Session IPA 

Third Barrel Day Drinkin Simcoe Session IPA  

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

Enjoy the true taste of traditional bottled Irish stout. Brewed with roast barley, chocolate and wheat malts, and choicest hops. A generous stout with extra depth of flavour.

That is the encouragement on the bottle’s label, so let's have a taste… Black as Kilkenny marble for sure and with a soft floppy tan head that sinks rather slowly. Light coffee aromas and fruity notes also rise from the glass. And they get to tango on the palate, a melange of dancing flavours and sharp acidity waking up the taste buds, and keeping the show going, generously throwing in an encore or two at the finale. If the O’Shea’s (below) is mid-table, this neighbouring stout is championship material.

The hops used are Admiral, Magnum, Goldings and Sullivan’s say it is delicious with roasts and cheese dishes.

Did you know that Sullivan’s were brewing in Kilkenny before Smithwick’s? And then the two got intertwined?

Here’s the timeline, from the O’Sullivan website:

1702 Sullivan’s Brewing Company is established, and grows to be biggest in the area 

1827 The Smithwick name is launched as a beer brand in Kilkenny

1918 Smithwick’s acquires the Sullivan’s brewing brand after it is forced to close

1965 Guinness (now Diageo) takes control of Smithwick’s, buying the family interest 

2014 Diageo relocates Smithwick’s to Dublin, marking the first time in 800 years that Kilkenny is without a commercial brewery 

2016 Smithwick family relaunches the Sullivan’s brand in Kilkenny; brewery launches its North American market entry via Buffalo, NY.

See October review on Sullivan’s “Maltings” Irish Ale here.   

Wicklow Wolf Sirius Black IPA, 6.0%, 440 ml can Bradleys

Not too sure if the Sirius of the name refers to Sirius the brightest star in the night sky or to Sirius Black a character in Harry Potter. Probably not after the famous steamship Sirius, well-known in Cork in the 19th century and the first of its kind to cross the Atlantic.

In any case, the beer is black, black as night, with a tan head.  Aromas are quiet, just some faint floral and even fainter spice notes coming through. It is much more assertive in the mouth though,  with a backbone of milk chocolate, coffee and roast malt flavours. There’s a posse of malts in this one. 

No shortage of hops either with no less than four, all from the USA, employed combining to give flavours of passion fruit, subtle orange and an earthy resinous bitterness. One to make those taste buds sit up and take notice.

They say: “A magical Black IPA, Sirius was brewed with a robust malt bill to provide strong depth of flavour and colour to the beer. This robust malt bill gives the beer a dark opaque appearance… .Sirius is a West Coast style Black IPA that was double dry hopped with a massive amount of Amarillo, Simcoe and Strata hops.”

"The endangered species brews are a series of small batch, limited edition crafted beers. These beers are so rare that only a lucky few will get to experience them in the wild before they become extinct." This is #34

Geek Bits:

Hops - Bravo, Simcoe, Amarillo, Strata

Malts - Pale Malt, Carafa Special Type 1, Carafa Special Type 3, Caramalt, Dark Malt, T50

O’Shea’s Cold Dark Stout, 4.5%, 500ml bottle Aldi

Seldom easy to find detailed info on supermarket beers and this is no exception. But you’ll read this line on the neck: Traditional Dry Irish Stout bursting with flavours of coffee and chocolate.

Okay. Pours out into the glass as black as midnight with a tan head (short-lived). That coffee and chocolate seep out of the glass and there’s a toasty note as well.

While named O’Shea’s, it is made by Carlow Brewing who also make O’Hara's beers (including some really excellent stouts). It could be a bit more full-bodied, more robust, on the palate and it continues to a reasonably dry if shortish finish.  That coffee/chocolate duet persists to the end but it needs a bit more to shift it out of mid-table.

*************

Whiplash: Few Riddlers, be grand. After a brief hiatus on the webshop, Body Riddle is freshly canned and ready to go! Grab it in a Big Huge Slab or in a 6-pack Mixtape with other styles. Scroll on to see more  New to Body Riddle? It's our interpretation of an American Pale Ale, weighing in at 4.5% and in a 330ml can, it's perfect for suppin'. It has a really bright hop bill with loads of Lemondrop, Galaxy, Simcoe, and Ekuanot leaving us with notes of passionfruit, lemon rind, grapefruit juice and some piney goodness.

Shop Body Riddle

*************

Bullhouse Brew Co : Modest Beer & Cheese Night

Beer and Cheese at Bullhouse East. Join us on Tuesday 8th November for an intimate beer and cheese pairing with Chris Morris, owner and head brewer of Modest Beer. These intimate tastings are limited to 20 tickets per tasting and include a guided talk on 5 different beers paired with 5 excellent local cheeses. The event kicks off sharply at 7:30pm and we ask you to be there for 7pm.

BUY TICKET

*************

Crew's Irish Night...

Irish Night in Limerick
Every Thursday, 8PM

Irish Night happens every Thursday from 8PM. It’s a great chance to use your cúpla focail in a supportive environment. Any level of the Irish language is welcome, from total beginners to fluent speakers. It's been said that it's easier the more pints you've had!

*************

Kinnegar New Beers Alert

There are no fewer than five new beers jostling for position in the release queue. First to burst out of the holding pen was our 2022 Barleywine which will appear in just a few weeks wearing its smart BAP28 uniform. Not yet packaged but next in line for canning and first in line for release is BAP27, a Black Lager that Rick was curious to try as part of our Brewers at Play series. This is the first of our lagers to go over to the dark side so we’re pretty excited about tasting it in its finished form. And there's more to follow...

My Favourite Beers of the Year 2022 Announcing the October winner. Wide Street Coolship.

My Favourite Beers of the Year 2022

Announcing the October winner: 

Wide Street Coolship

Contenders to end of October:

October: Wide Street Coolship Spontaneously Fermented Ale

September: Bradleys (with Dot Brew) Nice One IPA

August:12 Acres Pale Ale

July: Wicklow Wolf Locavore Summer 2022 Foraged Elderflower Saison

June: Wicklow Wolf Mescan Wit or Without You Belgian Wit

May: Wicklow Wolf Locavore Spring 2022 Barrel Aged Farmhouse Ale

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

October. The Final List

Spon: Wide Street Coolship Spontaneously Fermented Ale

Stout:Brehon Shanco Dubh Porter

Red Ale: Sullivan’s Maltings Irish Ale

Session: Lineman Group Therapy Session IPA, 4.6%

Pils: Farringtons Bohemian

October Short List

Session: 

White Hag Little Fawn Session IPA 4.2% 

Outer Place Mini Mini Session Disco IPA, 4.4% ABV 

Farringtons Clever Plucker Session NEIPA, 4.5% 

DOT Brew Spin Off Series Session IPA, 3.2% 

Lineman Group Therapy Session IPA, 4.6%

IPA:

White Hag West Coast to West Coast. 

Blacks Pineapple & El Dorado 

Stout: 

Brehon Shanco Dubh Porter, 7.7%

Pils: 

Farringtons Bohemian Pils 

Spon: 

Wide Street Coolship Spontaneously Fermented Ale  

Red Ale: 

Sullivan’s Maltings Irish Ale, 5%

Craft on Draught:

The Maritime, Bantry: 9 White Deer Kölsch

The Lake, Killarney: Ale and Lager by Killarney Brewing Co.

Merry’s, Dungarvan: Wicklow Wolf Ale and more

The Shelbourne, Cork: Beamish and more

The Cotton Ball, Cork: Lynch’s Stout, Indian Summer and more

Mellet’s Emporium, Swinford: Reel Deel Jack the Lad, Mescan Seven Virtues Lager.

Keenan’s, Tarmonbarry, Co. Roscommon: White Hag Little Fawn; Kinnegar’s Scraggy Bay.

Finín’s Midleton: Black’s KPA

Franciscan Well: Original 7 Weisse and more

Elbow Lane: Angel Stout and more

The Mad Monk by Quinlan’s, Killarney: Killarney’s Casey Brothers Extra Stout and Golden Spear Blonde

Castlerosse Hotel Bar, Killarney:  Killarney’s Golden Spear Blonde

Celtic Whiskey & Larder, Killarney: Tom Crean St Brigid’s Lager and Rascals Black Horse Stout 4.4% and more

Café Pigalle Cork: White Hag’s Atlantean NEIPA (also White Hag lager)

Spooky Beers??

Black Donkey Have You Covered.

"Samhain Season is upon us ,

It is a time for welcoming the harvest and ushering in the dark half of the year. Samhain holds a special place in our memories as our Underworld series was born from this darkness.

The Underworld series of native Irish beers was born out of our quest for adventure, our sense of history and our respect for tradition. If you haven't tried the three Underworld beers yet, you are missing out on Ireland's only beers fermented with a native Irish yeast.

On October 31st, 2017, we embarked upon the Wild Yeast Chase and harvested a yeast we named Morrigan from Oweynagat cave. The cave is considered to be the “Gate to Hell” or entrance to the Underworld and the origin of Samhain. You have been warned!

Sergeant Jimmy 2022 is on its way, scheduled for a late November release. 
And something sour, barrel conditioned and special this way comes in the next month or less, stay tuned!

Forever and always, we ask you to support local wherever you can. This support helps small independent brewers like ourselves to keep brewing."

**********

Rye River Celebrate Again

World's Best Helles/Münchner!

Celebrations are in order! Our Bidin' Time Irish Lager has been officially named the 'World's Best Helles/Münchner' at the World Beer Awards 2022. Yes, that's right, the world's best! And it didn’t stop there. We picked up a further 40 awards to be named the World's Most Decorated Brewery for the 3rd consecutive year.