As a fan of dark and red beers, I always try to try something new. But that doesn't always work, as there's usually only a limited range available in the supermarkets. So this time I only had a six-pack of Kilkenny.
That's only in quotation marks, of course, because it's a very drinkable red beer.
So a delicious steak and a glass of Kilkenny to go with it. That immediately reminds me of Ireland.
I've already been to Ireland twice. Once with @Detlev in Dublin in 2016. But we only drank Guinness there, as far as I can remember.
Before that, I went golfing in Kerry with my wife in 2013. The Ring of Kerry Golf Club was our starting point. On the way from Dublin to the coast, we didn't pass Kilkenny, where the beer comes from. But we certainly drank several of them in the hotel.
However, the history of the beer is very interesting.
Kilkenny's beer tradition dates back to the late Middle Ages: monks from the Franciscan monastery of St. Francis Abbey were already brewing beer in the 13th century, long before brewery founder John Smithwick settled in the city. The excellent water quality of the "Friars Well" monastery well and the abundance of natural raw materials from the region provided the best conditions for this.
About the beer they say:
A balanced masterpiece of traditional Irish brewing, our Kilkenny Irish Red Ale is a truly Irish beer of the highest quality, representing the Irish way of life.
For over three centuries, our recipe has hardly changed - we use only water, hops, barley and yeast. The result is a top-fermented beer that impresses with its incomparable aroma: fruity and flowery with a hint of caramel and roasted aromas. Refreshing and pure in taste, Kilkenny Irish Red Ale tastes typically Irish.
The secret behind the characteristic ruby red shimmering color of Kilkenny Irish Red Ale lies in the special roasting process of the barley in the brewery - a process that only a few breweries worldwide still carry out directly on site. The brewers of Kilkenny Irish Red Ale are thus continuing what once began within the medieval walls of a Franciscan monastery: monks at St. Francis Abbey in Kilkenny developed the uniquely Irish brewing process as early as the 13th century.
Today, Kilkenny Irish Red Ale is brewed exclusively in the St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin - but its unadulterated taste still bears witness to centuries of Irish brewing tradition.
