Sipping Mescan Beer and Smoke on the Water. CorkBillyBeers #24

 Sipping Mescan Beer and 

Smoke on the Water.

CorkBillyBeers #24

Began a two day trip to Mayo with a call to a micro brewery under the gaze of Croagh Patrick and the smoke on the water came later as we drove toward the lakes in the beautiful Doolough Valley as it was drifting high into the sky from a fire blazing on the slopes at the left hand side.

We had long made attempts to get to see the Mescan Brewery, makers of Belgian style craft beers and based in Cartoor, well off the road between Westport and Louisburgh. We got there eventually and met up with Cillian for a couple of sips and a chat. 

Mescan beers are highly rated and rightly so. Amazing attention to detail and casks full of patience are required. He explained that his beers take a minimum of 4 months with the heavy ones getting 6-8 months where your normal craft beer takes just a few weeks from start to counter (can vary from brewer to brewer). While the extra time makes the Mescan more expensive, Cillian reckons it is very important for the quality of the beer. And it is indeed a premium product.

The beautiful Doolough Valley

New beers here are tried out in 50 litre batches but he said you can never be sure, the results are never totally accurate and can be different when brewed in bulk!

But yes, the patience is well worth it as we found out when we sipped their Special Reserve (8.6% ABV). The famous Chimay Blue was the inspiration for this recipe and it is fantastic. Another superb special is the Baltic Porter, brewed with a lager yeast.

And later that evening, I was on the strong stuff again, this time thanks to Dermott of the lovely restaurant called The Pantry and Corkscrew in Westport. It was his last bottle of the Old Brown (delivery was due the next day) and it was absolutely enjoyable and I loved it as I knew I would - I did have a few over the past year or two. Talking about patience, this is matured in oak barrels for more than two years. Worth waiting for!!!

Flames spreading

Not all the Mescan beers are super strong. Take the lager for instance. That weighs in at 4.5% and is one of the very best around. Had one of those as well in the Pantry and Corkscrew.

Cillian is a busy man. A few days earlier he had been in Dublin doing a collaboration with Whiplash.  In March, he was in the capital for the “Me Auld Flower Festival” in a historic building that used to be home to the Dublin City Fruit, Veg and Flower Market. 

Smoke rising from the water in the valley

It was emotional for Cillian, a Dub himself: ”My great great grandfather, Patrick Moran, took the first stall in those markets after they were opened in 1893. He moved into Arran House on the corner ….. and our family lived there for over a 100 years. I remember growing up there and the Warden letting me and my older brother Paddy ring the end of market bell each day -  50 years ago.”

And if you want to try out Mescan beers and much more then head to the Grainne Ale Festival on the Saturday and Sunday of this Bank Holiday weekend - 29th & 30th April 2023! "Come choose from a range of beers from local independent breweries in the beer garden of Gracy’s Pizzeria and Bistro at Westport House."  

 

Our sips and chats over, we said goodbye to Cillian and to Theo (a Frenchman doing the work while we were talking) and, with directions, headed off cross country to Doolough.

This is one of the most beautiful corners of the country but loaded with sadness too because of what happened here during the famine, such sadness among such beauty. Disappointed to see the smoke rising though as we got closer but there were fireman and helpers on the scene and they soon got it under control though it left a nasty black scar on the slopes. 

With the smoke cleared we got a great view of the lakes and the mountains, probably the clearest day we’ve enjoyed here. A highly recommended drive and just a few minutes from Louisburgh (check out its lovely Portuguese café TIA).

On our way back to the hotel in Westport, we made a stop at the Croagh Patrick carpark. No, not to climb the famous mountain but to cross the road and reflect as we looked at the marvellous National Famine Memorial, the Coffin Ship by sculptor John Behan. More sadness.

Detail from the Famine Ship (above)

* If you'd like to visit Mescan, they are open to visitors most Friday afternoons through the summer - online booking required here.

Also on this trip

Superb Dining At Westport's The Pantry & Corkscrew

Achill Island in the sun. And wind.

Sipping Mescan Beer. Doolough Valley.

Ballycroy National Park

Paradiso: Recipes & Reflections by Denis Cotter

 Paradiso: Recipes & Reflections by Denis Cotter

A new cookbook from Denis Cotter celebrates the beauty of vegetables while paying homage to 30 years of popular Cork restaurant Paradiso

Strawberry & elderflower pavlova, recipe from Paradiso, Recipes & Reflections
(Pics Ruth Calder-Potts)

Chef, restaurateur and author Denis Cotter is pleased to announce his latest book, Paradiso: Recipes & Reflections, a beautiful 216-page hardback cookbook featuring a collection of over 160 recipes, on sale at ninebeanrowsbooks.com and at Paradiso in Cork City, €39.

When Denis Cotter opened Paradiso in 1993, his hope was to create a modern, vegetable-based cuisine that could stand with ‘normal’ restaurants, a place where people went to eat pleasurable, exciting, modern food. Thirty years later, Paradiso has become a beloved part of Cork’s food culture. Paradiso: Recipes & Reflections is a snapshot of where Paradiso is now. It will show you how to produce dishes that can be served alone or incorporated into a series of courses. By incorporating these into your own repertoire, you can bring a touch of Paradiso to anything you cook. 

Sample recipes include: pan-roasted artichokes, nettle broth, lemon arancini, pine nut crumb, smoked tomato purée; aubergine, black sesame yogurt, zhoug, fried capers; smoky za’atar roast squash with lemon tahini, popped barley, mint and pomegranate; dan dan noodles; grilled peach with cucumber, pickled radish, sheep’s milk labneh, mint, watercress and macadamia; and strawberry & elderflower pavlova.

Denis Cotter, author of Paradiso, Recipes & Reflections
 (Pic Ruth Calder-Potts)

An accomplished author with four previous cookbooks under his belt, including The Café Paradiso Cookbook (1999), Paradiso Seasons (2003), Wild Garlic, Gooseberries … and Me (2007) and For the Love of Food (2011), Paradiso: Recipes and Reflections is Denis’s first book in 12 years.  

For Denis, this latest tome captures the essence of Paradiso now. He says, “The book is a result of gathering and translating over the years, and could not be called anything other than simply Paradiso because that is what it is and what it represents. It is us now. It is our manual for today and, with just a glance at and a nod to the past, it is what the future is always being built on.”

A gorgeous coffee table book as well as a recipe book, the foreword is by Cork-born actor Cillian Murphy, who carries a long-held affection for the food and philosophy of Paradiso.

Paradiso: Recipes and Reflections is available from 4th May at www.ninebeanrowsbooks.com and will also be sold at Paradiso, 16 Lancaster Quay, Cork City from 4th May. When you buy a copy of Paradiso directly from Nine Bean Rows or the restaurant, you will also get an enamelled turnip lapel pin and a Paradiso notebook as a free bonus while stocks last.

For more information, see paradiso.ie and ninebeanrowsbooks.com.

Keep up to date with the latest news by following Paradiso on social @paradisocork

press release

Brunch at the Baker's Table of Lismore, just the job after a walk on The Vee

Brunch at the Baker's Table of Lismore 

just the job after a walk on The Vee

Toastie

The sun is shining as we approach the Baker’s Table of Lismore on a recent Friday morning. The restaurant has just opened for brunch and we could do with some sustenance after a jaunt around the Vee, a few miles outside of the town on Blackwater River, a town perhaps best known for its castle (you may visit the gardens).

While the sun is out, the temperatures are low and logs are burning in the large fireplace in the dining room. Not just a dining room, you may call here for takeouts including coffee (by Badger & Dodo), sandwiches and sweet pastries!

The menu has quite a selection to choose from including quiches, soups, salads, pancakes and various egg dishes. CL went for the traditional Quiche Lorraine, with all the usual ingredients and two salads. Just the job after that walk on the Vee.

From the selection of open sandwiches, my choice was the the Roast

Pepper and Ardsallagh Feta Toastie, served on their own sourdough, again  with a choice of two salads. Full of flavour and texture, well cooked, well presented and well priced at 10.50, same as the Quiche.

Quiche

We didn’t leave it at that. Two fine cups of the B&D coffee were ordered along with a couple from a list of tempting pastries, the Apple Crumble and Berry Crumble.

Sat back and enjoyed those, looking out at the sunny street through the large front window, taking in the display of chopping boards on one wall and a look at the nearby piano (lid closed at that hour!).

Apple

The Bakers also do a Supper Club on Friday and Saturday evenings and a Sunday Roast as well. Their hours are limited at present but do check their social media as they are more or less certain to expand  opening times as the season progresses. 

We did have a little hiccup with their online booking system though, as it gave us a slot at 10.00am when they weren’t actually opening until eleven. A late night phone call from the Bakers sorted it and that was why we were up on the Vee before our first meal of the day! Otherwise it would have been breakfast first and walk afterwards. As it happened, it worked out well.

Sunny morning!

On this trip

Mount Congreve, Kilmeaden

The Local, Dungarvan

The Baker's Table of Lismore

Vinilo, Lismore

Marvellous Sunny Morning On The Vee (Waterford/Tipperary)

360 Town Stay, Dungarvan

The Shamrock

Seafood Delights at Cliff House Hotel Festival Lunch

A Champion Morgon By Chamonard. Opening "always a precious moment"

Champion Morgon By Chamonard

Chamonard Morgon Le Clos de la Lys (AC) 2017, 13%, 

€27.95 Le Caveau, 64 Wine, Greenman Wines, Bradleys Cork 

Domaine Chamonard is a small winery located in the heart of Beaujolais. It produces organic and natural wines from the vineyards it cultivates in Villié-Morgon. I first came across this one at the Le Caveau Portfolio tasting in early 2020. If I had to pick one from the lot that day,  this would have been it!

It comes in the expected pale colour. Aromas are both floral and fruity (raspberry, plum) and a little earthy. It ambushes you on the palate, so rich and intense, the flavours of one of the most fruity of wines and the characteristic acidity going toe to toe and a pleasing balance emerges and the velvety wine heads to a refreshing and lasting finish.

Enjoyed it three years ago and happy to have it now. No dinner this evening (had a big lunch earlier) but the Chamonard is going down well with a simple (lazy!) supper of cheddar and sourdough (from Vinilo of Lismore).

Wine Folly says Gamay is often compared with Pinot Noir (they are related!). “Gamay wines are loved for their delicate floral aromas, subtle earthy notes, and surprising ability to pair with food (even fish!). The best part is, you can find high quality Gamay at a much better price than Pinot Noir.” In the book, they underline its versatility at the table with suggested pairings from “sweet and sour salmon to beef stroganoff or even sesame tempeh”.

Very Highly Recommended.

The Gamay grape, outlawed by Royal decree in 1395  for being “a very bad and disloyal plant”, is now one of the most respected, at least when grown in the Beaujolais region. Morgan is one of ten cru areas here and one of the better known ones. The full list is Chiroubles, Saint Amour, Fleurie, Régnié, Brouilly, Cote de Brouilly, Juliénas, Chénas, Morgon and Moulin-à-Vent.

Importers Le Caveau are big fans of Chamonard: “Opening a bottle of Morgon from Domaine Chamonard is always a precious moment…. From 4 hectares of vines averaging 60 years old, mainly from the best parcels ……..the grapes are hand-harvested in late - October to maximize ripeness and in order to make an intensive selection of only the best fruit. The results of all of this effort is in the bottle, you just need to pull the cork to see for yourself.”

Dungarvan's Cheerful Shamrock Restaurant

 Dungarvan's Cheerful Shamrock Restaurant

Where everybody knows your name

And they're always glad you came

You wanna go where people know

People are all the same

You wanna go where everybody knows your name

I was reminded of these words from the theme song of Cheers (the well-loved TV series) when listening to the conversations at the Shamrock Restaurant in Dungarvan on a recent evening. The restaurant is as well up in the popularity stakes as Cheers having been serving the good people of the town, and their visitors, for over 40 years.

Just to be clear. They didn't know my name. I was a blow-in and now could well blow-in again, such was the quality of the food, well-cooked well priced too, the buzz of conviviality. Incoming customers greeted by name by the staff, these customers greeting diners already at table as they passed in and passed out.

By the way, they also have rooms upstairs and these have been described as a great addition to Dungarvan by one of the town’s leading people (who is in the same business). I reckon it would be great to stay there, so central and no doubt friendly. Next time!

Steak

Anyhow, we were there for our evening meal. We knew the menu, more or less. Shamrock use social media but in a targeted way. Every day the menu goes up.You wonder why, as there seems no change, at first glance. But a more careful look reveals a few changes, always a few. After all, variety is the spice of life.

And I got a little spice, just a little in my starter, a delicious threesome of well packed Spring Rolls with accompanying salad. Notice that I said threesome; you usually get two but here it was three for just 8 euro.

Happy with the starter and very happy indeed with my mains: an 8 oz Striploin Steak Sandwich (€15) in a garlic ciabatta with caramelised onions, fresh rocket and chips. Meat was as tender and flavoursome as could be, cooked to medium as requested, and the garlic, the onions and salad all top notch as were the fries. Even better when washed down with a bottle of 9 White Deer Kolsch (6.00), a craft beer from the Ballyvourney brewer. Steak and beer both highly recommended.

Chicken

And good vibes too from the other side of the table where CL was tucking into her Roast stuffed breast of chicken (€12.00) served with broccoli and root vegetables (the veg well cooked, neither too hard nor too soft), mashed potatoes and a generous pour of gravy, this was very satisfactory plateful indeed.

We were so well fed, we declined desserts even though they were just a fiver each and included Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake, Bakewell Tart, Carrot Cake (gluten free), Sticky Toffee Pudding (qluten free), Chocolate & Orange Cake, Apple Tart, Rhubarb and Strawberry Crumble, Apple and Strawberry Crumble.

And more (including specials at weekends), and all served with cream, Ice-cream or custard.

On this trip

Mount Congreve, Kilmeaden

The Local, Dungarvan

The Baker's Table of Lismore

Vinilo, Lismore

Marvellous Sunny Morning On The Vee (Waterford/Tipperary)

360 Town Stay, Dungarvan

The Shamrock

Seafood Delights at Cliff House Hotel Festival Lunch