[dropcap]C[/dropcap]raft beer: the concept carries with it a host of pre-conceived notions, not least the image of a bearded, checked-shirt wearing aficionado decrying the evils of the mass-market, commercial beer corporations. Unfairly dismissed as a pretentious trend, craft brewing in reality is a vibrant, accessible and exciting movement which has been steadily developing in Ireland since the 1990s. While the traditional beer market remains dominated by the big brands, there is a rising taste for craft brews — the varied combinations of hops, malt and yeast produce a vaster range of unique and complex flavours to suit all tastes. Ireland has experienced an explosion in craft brewing in recent times, with an endless list of new and creative microbreweries cropping up across the country, from Galway Hooker to Franciscan Well, Mountain Man to Carlow Brewing Company. These independent companies have provided the Irish beer market with an impressive array of exotic and refreshing beverages. For the craft virgin the variety associated with this trend can be confusing. At the top of the pile we have the IPA, a hoppy beer with a slightly bitter flare, or a Double IPA if you’re feeling adventurous. Pale and Amber Ales are good options for those who prefer a mellower, smoother taste while craft porters and stouts have a robust, more intense flavour. Craft beer on tap is often very good value compared to its commercial counterpart, but some varieties can veer towards the pricier end of the scale (some pubs are known to sell certain craft beers in smaller glasses at an increased cost).
Reuben Gray, the chairman of Beoir (an organisation promoting and raising awareness of the Irish craft brewing industry) comments on factors which significantly encouraged the Irish craft beer boom — “a duty rebate scheme in 2006 for microbreweries allowed the few existing microbreweries to expand and a new wave to open up from 2007 onwards”. Gray refers to the policy implemented by former Taoiseach Brian Cowen, whereby micro-breweries in Ireland producing fewer than 20,000 hectolitres of beer per annum would be entitled to a 50% tax rebate. The collapse of the Celtic Tiger had a tangible effect upon the craft brewing industry, but not in a negative way. Gray believes that the craft brewing prosperity “emerged out of the recession. When every other industry contracted, the craft beer sector boomed. People had less money to spend and many chose quality over quantity”. It seems the Irish consumer began to make more measured and carefully considered spending decisions, a consequence that ensured they chose beers with more character, genuine taste and developed flavours.
“When every other industry contracted, the craft beer sector boomed. People had less money to spend and many chose quality over quantity”
One could argue that a new generation of unique brewpubs are slowly beginning to replace the traditional Irish pub, a previously steadfast institution that is suffering a slow demise in the wake of the recession — recent figures have disclosed that over a thousand pubs have shut up shop in the last eight years. Several excellent examples of brewpubs in Dublin have become noticeably successful, The Porterhouse, JW Sweetmans and Against the Grain to name but a few. Brewing their own beer, often on the premises itself, they’re an excellent gateway into the craft beer world for the uninitiated.
The big beer corporations are beginning to sweat. The recent attempt by Irish brewing stalwart Guinness to tap into the craft market can be viewed as sign of the rising success of the craft beer industry in general. The two new brews, Dublin Porter and West Indies Porter, were launched by Guinness last October and are apparently “inspired by brewing methods from the 18th and 19th centuries”, with emphasis being made on tradition and history in its marketing materials. The popularity of these new additions has yet to be determined. In a global context, the Irish beer market can be compared with the US beer industry, where Budweiser is gradually being crowded out by the rapid rise in craft beer popularity. The former “king of beers” is quickly losing its royal status in the States, and has become something of an afterthought among the younger generations — some 44% of drinkers in their twenties today have never even tried Budweiser. Their recent Super Bowl advertisement quickly attracted a spate of criticism for its poorly disguised attack on the craft beer industry; deriding those who “fuss over” their beer (depicting a snooty craft beer enthusiast with a handlebar moustache, precociously sniffing his “pumpkin peach ale” like a glass of wine). The overly macho tone of the ad scoffs at the effeminate craft beer drinker who “sips” rather than drinks like a man — “the people who like our beer like to drink beer brewed the hard way”. Despite these crude tactics to scorn the craft brewing market, the harsh fact remains that the American craft brewing sector is expanding rapidly, and the Budweiser advertisement feels like the desperate response of an organisation feeling rather vulnerable.
The Irish market appears to be developing more rapidly than its US and European counterparts, and is using new innovative production methods. Gray draws attention to the Metalman brewery in Waterford, which has launched a canning line, making them the first microbrewery here to sell beer in a can. This follows in the footsteps of a growing number of US and UK breweries making that switch. One Irish brewery similarly making waves in the industry is Bru brewery in Trim, Co. Meath. Opened by Daire Harlin and Paddy Hurley in 2013 on the banks of the Boyne River, their relatively new business uses natural local ingredients to brew their expanding range which includes stout, lager, ale and wheatbeer.
To those who appreciate a quality IPA, or those looking to expand their taste horizons, the Alltech Craft Brews and Food Fair will be arriving in Dublin from the February 27 to the March 1, with a huge array of local and international craft beverages on offer, and even a Craft Beer Cup award, presented to the finest brew. The Irish craft beer revolution shows no sign of slowing down, as Gray optimistically concludes: when it comes to beer, “the Irish have woken up to variety and quality”.
Photos by Kathleen Girvan
