The true color of Irish beer

Orlando Sentinel ^ | 3-16-05 | Heather McPherson

[Dan from Michigan]

The true color of Irish beer

Take time to discover the warmth and the richness of Eire's best libations.

By Heather McPherson | Sentinel Food Editor Posted March 16, 2005

With a national beer as thickly colored as liquid chocolate, do you really think any true Irish imbiber would tint his or her beer green on St. Patrick's Day?

"Not in this bar," says Ann Tobar, manager of An Tobar Irish Pub in Hotel Orlando North (formerly the Sheraton Maitland). She expects the house to be packed as the Guinness flows on Thursday.

Pastel beer is for the Bennigan's crowd. Armed with bottles of green food dye, celebrants have trivialized a brew culture that is as rich in flavor as it is in tradition, says Julie Bradford, editor of All About Beer magazine (allabout beer.com).

For the Irish-beer neophyte, lagers might be a good starting point. Think American pilsner with more substance and character. But Bradford urges adventurous drinkers to jump right in with the dry stouts.

"There's not much difference between, say, an Irish Harp Lager and many finely crafted American beers," says Bradford. "If the person prefers to tiptoe into the world of Irish beer, a better bet would be a red ale like Smithwick."

(snip)

Other Irish beers to look for in pubs and full-service liquor stores this St. Patrick's Day are Beamish Irish Stout, Kilkenny Irish Beer, Macardles Traditional Ale, Murphy's Irish Stout (sweeter and rounder than Guinness, says Bradford) or Murphy's Irish Amber.

All have distinctive attri-butes and -- even better -- not a green hue among the lot.

[Republican Red]

Remembering St. Patty's Days of past (BC - Before Children)

My opinion on Guinness doesn't travel well. I loved it in Ireland but don't like it at home. Murphy's is my Irish beer of preference.

[cyborg]

It's brown.

[frogjerk]

Murphy's is my Irish beer of preference.

AMEN, BROTHER OF TREMENDOUS FREEPULANCE!

[Betis70]

I read a while ago that the Guinness in Ireland actually has less alcohol than the export product. I guess because taxes there are based on alcohol content. But I got that out of a home brewer book about 10 years ago, so the info might be out of date.

Murphys is good stuff also.

[zook]

The Guinness Draft I get in cans and bottles here in the US is like food for the gods.

[Dan from Michigan]

It ain't "green beer", that's for sure.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Mmmm! Thanks for the reminder. I can easily see a "Black & Tan" in my near future. Yum!

[JennysCool]

B'Day Ping!

[PfromHoGro]

Hi,

Do you know of the Wisconsin Micro Brew Fest in Chilton, May 22nd? It's the greatest day of the year.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Thanks for the Heads Up! :)

[Dan from Michigan]

Black and Tan??? (eyes bulge out)

That's treason!

A friend of mine actually got in some trouble for ordering a Black and Tan in Dublin. He's an American who is originally from England, and still has a strong British accent.

[HIDEK6]

Next thing they'll be saying is, "My Wild Irish Rose" isn't really an Irish song.

But seriously, though, folks, authentic Irish music is as hard to listen to as authentic Irish beer is hard to drink (once you've gotten used to the green stuff).

Ducking now, Mick.

[PfromHoGro]

You have to have tickets two weeks in advance. Rowlands Calumet brewery is the host, but there are may bars selling tickets if they carry one of the 25 or so breweries that attend. They each bring 4-6 different types and it's all one can consume from 1pm to 6pm. I'm planning to concentrate on the Belgium Ales this year.

[rochester_veteran]

Try as I might, I've never developed a taste for the stouts, but give me an amber and I'm a happy man! Murphy's Irish Amber is a great beer!

rochester_veteran

[Diana in Wisconsin]

LOL! Well, I'll just have to drink them at home, under cover of darkness. I think they're yummy, and one of my local bartenders has them down to an art form.

(I'm not Irish, so no offense intended to the purists.)

[Republican Red]

Make that: Sister of Tremedous Freepulance!

[Eireann go Brach]

"There's not much difference between, say, an Irish Harp Lager and many finely crafted American beers," says Bradford. The ONLY real beer is Guiness Stout, not wimpy Guiness Draught - and certainly no American beer compares.

[Hatteras]

I spent a week in Ireland visiting some distant relatives over St. Patrick's Day one year. The good news was that the pubs were truly wonderful! The bad news? As soon as we stumbled home, I'd spend another hour on the toilet. I'm with you, that stuff is like drinking tar.

Of course, I managed to make my way back to the pubs each day to do it all over again. As they say, no pain, no gain... ;-)

[add925]

What a poser....