Top 'Cats.

Whenever I get the chance I like nothing better than kicking back with a beer and listening to some good music.

Kids in bed. A quiet house. Fire lit. Feet up. Glass of beer in hand. Black Rock? Don't mind if I do. Music. The choice of music is crucial to complete the moment.The current album that hits the spot when opportunities like this arise is the debut from The Watercats.

The Watercats are a duo from Lismore who play the sweetest bluesy/folky laid back songs around.
In a way we have adopted them as the official band of the brewery. They have been with us literally from day one when a mutual friend, Ormy, arranged for them to play at our launch party, and our paths have crossed several times since.

When the All Ireland Craft Beer Festival was being organised we were delighted to hear that they would be playing in the RDS on Saturday afternoon.

Through an unfortunate set of circumstances that has conspiracy theorists chomping at the bit, though, there appears to be no evidence that the Watercats actually played at the RDS. You can read Vicky's account of the weekend on her own wonderful blog.


I do have one shaky picture of them playing on a large stage with a big black backdrop behind them - you'll have to take my word for it that this is in fact the beer fest in the RDS.

After their gig they presented Jen with a copy of their new album, which is currently on heavy rotation on the brewery.

Thanks guys. Thanks for the support, the kind words, the wonderful music, and for the laughs.

'Til the next encounter...

Beer and cheese tasting

The cheese selection.

Last Friday night I found myself in the company of Kevin Sheridan, Sheridan's Cheesemongers, doing a beer and cheese tasting, as part of the Waterford Harvest Fest. The event was a sell-out, and so in the grand setting of the Theatre Royal vestibule a crowd of fifty people gathered to pair some of the finest cheese in Munster with our own beer (along with some cider from Cork and Apple juice from Tipperary).

We started off the evening with Triskel ash-covered raw goat cheese, paired with sparkling apple juice from The Apple Farm near Cahir. A delicate cheese, and the carbonation from the juice a perfect way to get the proceedings going.


Next up was Durrus, a washed rind cheese from Co. Cork, which we put together with Stonewell cider, also from Cork. Again this semi-soft cheese worked well with the sweetness from the apples.

And then it was on to the beer.

All three of our beers were paired with different cheeses. First up was Helvick Gold, paired with a local cheese, Knockanore Smoked cheese from Ballyneety. This one probably caused the most debate - the smokiness from the cheese could have worked equally as well with something more robust, like a stout, but the hops in the Helvick Gold seemed to balance well with the smoky sweetness of the cheese.

Next up was Copper Coast and Coolea, a Gouda style cheese from Macroom, Cork. Coolea I know very well, as it was my go-to cheese over the Bloom in the park weekend earlier in the summer. For me it was a winning combination, as we were edging towards ploughman's lunch territory here.

Finally it was the turn of Black Rock Stout with Cashel Blue cheese from Tipperary. Blue cheese and porter/stout is another classic combination, and this robust pairing was a perfect way to bring proceedings to a close.

As with any beer and food matchings, nothing is set in stone, and some lively discussion followed each pairing, which always adds to the interest and enjoyment of these evenings.

Hopefully we will get to run another beer and cheese tasting event in the not too distant future.

Kevin Sheridan educating us all on his knowledge of the world of cheese

I try to do something similar with beer.

Preparing the Black Rock Stout, matched with Cashel Blue.

There was plenty of lively discussion on our suggested pairings.

Relaxing at the end of a successful evening.

All photos courtesy of Emagine Media.

Nothing to see here...

A recent study* has shown that 50% of all blog posts start with the line "Sorry I haven't posted in so long", so with that in mind I'm just going to slip into the back of the room unnoticed.
If I were to offer excuses it would probably be along the lines of how summer time can be a very busy time, for the brewery, yes, but moreso for family life. But that would bore you, so I won't.

The study also went on to show that these blog posts continued with the blogger promising to blog more frequently, and with a new-found enthusiasm. Not for this blogger such empty promises.

We all remember that oft quoted line from Oates: "I am just going outside and may be some time".
Of course, no one remembers the next part of the quote: "I'm back. Anyone for a game of gin rummy?"**



*possibly made up.
**pretty sure that's made up too.

Brew Day...

Another guest post from Bean a'Leanna:

‘Brew Day’ was something that often got up my nose. I didn’t always enjoy the aroma, especially years ago when it all happened in the kitchen. I would purposely cook bacon and cabbage or boil spare ribs for three hours to outdo the whiff running through the house.
‘Nach ait an mac an saol’ how thrilled I am now to guess correctly every time what the Head Brewer has crafted on approach to the brewery. I have it down to within 5 metres of the building. Hmmm, sweet, it’s Copper Coast. Mmmm roastiness, Black Rock ( offer to taste), and Ahhh fresh citrus, the American hops of Helvick Gold.

A few weeks ago on my usual approach to the brewery, an obvious Brew Day was underway but I hadn’t quite nailed the aroma, “it’s like Black Rock” I thought as I walked in to meet a rather jittery Assistant Brewer Tom and a quite excited Head Brewer Cormac.
“They’re on the coffee” explained Cormac’s sister Claire who had put down a hard day running the business by the looks of the boys.

This was the day that our Oatmeal and Coffee Stout was born.



With joy, a friend of ours from Dunhill kept a few pigs on a small holding and fed them on spent grain over Winter with an amicable arrangement of a few rashers for payment. Bacon and beer rock !

One of my favourite breakfasts is ‘french toast with bacon and golden syrup’ and often when I go to work on early I’ll break my fast in The Ormonde café in Grattan Square Dungarvan for the ‘Best Breakfast in Town’

My favourite breakfast of all time though is Eggs Benedict, and making a hollandaise is like riding a bike, once you’ve got it, you’ve got it. So with some seriously tasty streaky bacon,from our well fed pig we had ourselves a feast.

Hollandaise: 3 egg yolks
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 ½ oz melted butter

Whisk egg yolks and salt until light and creamy.
Heat lemon juice and beat into whisked eggs.
Melt butter and pour finely into eggs whisking all the way.
Place bowl over pan of boiling water and continue to whisk.

Pour over anything and it’s delicious. Pour over free range streaky bacon and woo-hoo, ‘Táimid ar mhuin na muice’.
Teamed with a brew of coffee. Yum

The Harp Bar - 'a true gem'

Photo courtesy of camra.org.uk

Well done to The Harp Bar, Covent Garden, who have just been named CAMRA Pub of the Year. This is the first London pub to win the national competition, and a very worthy winner, if you ask me.

My knowledge of London pubs, as with all things London, is a lot more lacking than I would like it to be, but on a weekend break to about this time last year I finally found my way into The Harp. While Bean a'Leanna met up with Niamh (of Eat Like A Girl fame) I availed of the opportunity to take in a few pubs of note. First on the list was The Harp. A walk down from the hustle and bustle of a Friday morning's Leicester Square and I was there It may be surrounded by the likes of Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden and Leicester Square, but as soon as you step inside you really are taken away from the centre of London.
It was noon-ish as I sat on a high stool at the bar, and eyed up the line of hand pumps - a nice selection of Dark Star and a few London beers (Sam Brook's, Twickenham etc.) Bridget, the landlady was behind the bar, busy frying sausages for the lunchtime rush, while also chomping on wedges of Cashel Blue.

The Victorian decor of paintings, mirrors and bric-a-brac is charming without being forced - not like an 'Irish pub'. The outside is beautifully kept, with plenty of hanging baskets and stained glass windows.

Picture: harpcoventgarden.com (Dave Budden)

A wild boar sausage in a bun went down a treat, as did the few pints I tried - all in tip top condition. The lunchtime rush came and went, although most stayed, and I slipped away mid-afternoon to my next destination.
I always felt that a sign of a great pub is where you're made to feel like you're a regular, even if it's your first visit, and that's exactly the feeling I had coming away from here. I can't wait to re-visit the next time I make it to London.


Congratulations The Harp, pub of the year.

Award winning beer!

Last Friday news came through that our Black Rock Stout had won a bronze medal in the Brewing Industry International Awards 2011. To be honest I was completely stunned by the news, if not a little excited too.

The Brewing Industry International Awards has been running for 125 years, and after a break of six years the awards were held in Burton, England last week. Over 800 entries from all round the world entered, so to get any kind of acknowledgement was a lot more than I expected. It's category, Class 2, International Smallpack Ale (Class 2 being 3.8-4.7%) was, I would presume, a pretty competitive one, and to come third behind Shepherd Neame and Thwaite's is pretty good company to be in.

Celebratory dinner that night was Black Rock and Beef stew, with, of course, a bottle of Black Rock to wash it down. The recipe will follow on another post.

 Next day it was off to Cork to the first annual 'Winter Ale and Cask Ale festival' held in the Franciscan Well. This is a new addition to the Irish beer-fest calendar, and if their Easterfest is anything to go by should grow to be one of the highlights of the festival year.
For our part I had brewed a Coffee and Oatmeal Stout for the festival. Because of the size of our pilot brewery this was a very limited edition, so much so that on my way to Cork on Saturday morning I found out that the one cask that was sent up was quickly emptied on the Friday night. The plan was to get some feedback on the new stout, and to sample some myself! Oh well, there were still plenty of cracking beers to sample, and a bit of catching up with some fellow brewers, and some old and new friends from Beoir and Ciddytours.


A full list of award winners can be viewed here.

New year, new beers.

Christmas is but a distant memory and we're well settled back in to brewing after any new year festivities. It's an exciting time of the year as we plan for 2011. It won't be long before spring is here and we hit festival season.
With that in mind our focus over the last few weeks has turned to brewing some new beers, as well as our regular three.

First up is a Coffee and Oatmeal Stout. A good helping of locally produced rolled oats, and plenty of freshly brewed espresso gives a very moreish taste to this stout. It should make it's debut outing at the Franciscan Well's Winter Ale and Cask Ale festival in the middle of February.
(As an aside, it's great to see a festival dedicated solely to seasonal and cask beers; an indication of how the craft beer scene is progressing in Ireland, and one for another blog post.)

Another beer fresh out of our pilot brewery is an IPA. A 5.6% beer with lashings of simcoe hops to give a nice piney bitterness. Looking forward to seeing this one develop.

Others are in the offing, and I'll keep this blog updated with their progress. In the mean time, here's to the start of the beer-fest season.