The Moonshiner

This exists in Ireland!

Stardate 67285.9

22:30 - We started off our morning in the outskirts of Kilkenny and an hour behind. We did not have a schedule to keep, but Ireland did treat us to daylight savings early this year. As travel weary travelers, we accepted with gratitude. Plus, we ate our first full Irish breakfast, which beats most other breakfasts.

Rose garden in the rain.

We wanted to make a day of visiting two special manufacturers of alcohol: Smithwicks Brewery and Kilbeggan Distillery. We fell in love with Smithwicks the night before, so we felt it only right to pay homage to the drink by taking a tour. I mean it is located in an old St Francis Abbey, so we really were paying homage. However, our dreams were cut short by pesky maintenance heathens as the brewery was closed for upgrades until Spring 2014. So we substituted our first drinking tour with something I have never been to: a castle.

The Butler Crest over the main entrance

Kilkenny brags about being a Medieval town complete with torture displays, cathedrals, and castles. We went to what is now called the Kilkenny Castle. Originally built in the early thirteenth century, Kilkenny Castle endures as an example of Anglo-Norman architecture. The Butler family became the primary owners of the castle in the fourteenth century until 1967. The Butler family was a pretty big deal in Ireland; they even held fancy titles, such as Earl and Viscount. However, in 1967, they no longer wished to manage the upkeep of Kilkenny Castle, so he sold it to the government of Ireland for £50.

While the outsides represented the Anglo-Normans, the inside reflected Victorian tastes. It was filled with marvelous furniture and paintings from around the world. The paintings were mostly of the Butler family members and royalty throughout the ages.

Outside of the castle, the people of Kilkenny used the ground for different celebrations. While we were there, the Taste of Kilkenny festival took place. I got to speak with a woman who sold whiskey chocolate cream liquor called Coole Swan. We huddled under her tent to shelter from the rain. She knew right off the bat that Rob was part Irish. She also explained that it was her husband and her son that made the cream that went into the liquor, so I promptly took some off her hands. She ships worldwide, so go check her out.

After our castle tour, we drove to our next tour: Kilbeggan Distillery. Now this distillery has a proud tradition in Rob's family. His mother's side of the family comes from a long line of proud Irish people named McManus. It just so happened that a man named Matthias McManus built the distillery in 1757. Unfortunately, this distillery did not pass down throw the generations because in 1798, both Matthias and his son were executed for their parts in one of the many Irish rebellions. It seems that one thing did eventually pass down from generation to generation and that would be the fiery attitude towards authority.

As he lovingly looks onto his family's legacy

The town of Kilbeggan took care of the whiskey license, thus the namesake, so other Irishmen like Locke and Cooley could make whiskey in the future. Because of their dedication, this whiskey distillery can proudly be called the oldest licensed whiskey distillery in Ireland and perhaps the world (from 1757 onward to be exact).

The current Kilbeggan distillery has the old operation juxtaposed against the new. We saw the the old equipment, such as mash tin, and the water wheel that powered everything. Fun fact, Focus Foxies, the distillery used to dump the some of the alcoholic waste into the adjacent river. Most of the fish in that river would be temporarily knocked out by this waste but would recover downstream. The old operation was small and cramped, and I had enjoyed ignoring the 'mind your head' signs. The new operation was slick. We got to see all of the modern yet rustic finishes. Rob was more interested in seeing the actual production. I set about admiring the modern yet rustic touches. Those large barrels contained the early stages of whiskey pre-distilled. They were just open and for the taking. We contained ourselves and did not take a sip or a bath.

The Waterwheel

House Special

The Kilbeggan distillery eventually made its way into the hands of the Cooley company. We were able to buy and try out some of the various whiskeys made in-house and around the company.  The main ones in-house were the Locke's brand and the Connemara whiskey. The Locke's brand is a straight forward Irish whiskey. The Connemara whiskey has a peaty flavor and is Rob's favorite. The other two we tried were the Tyrconnell and the Greenore. The Tyrconnell was named after a race horse who was named for a region in Ireland. The Greenore took on more aspects of a bourbon, thus it became my favorite. With the tour, we had one free whiskey tasting and shot glass, so they gave us the house special. Of course, we had to try out a few more. How else would we know what to take back as souvenirs?

We sobered up in the Kilbeggan Distillery restaurant, feasting on ham and cabbage and an amazing chicken club. Our final destination for day was in Galway where we stayed in a fancy hotel, The Clayton. Believe you me, Focus Foxies, I googled these directions. There was no way I would allow the same shenanigans as the previous night. Once parked, we let other people drive us into town for a Saturday night out.

We quickly realized that Galway is the town for Hen and Stag parties. Focus Foxies, I think you might misinterpret this statement as a few people go out before they get hitched in Galway. No, false. Every larger party we saw out and about in Galway was a Hen or Stag party. They were rampant across town. Our first place definitely attracted this crowd. The Quays (pronounced keys) hosted a live cover band that played everything from Johnny Cash to the Black Keys. Apparently, Johnny Cash travels well in Ireland. The cover band really played well. Our next location we stumbled upon was called Murphys. Murphys represents your typical Irish pub. We say that because none of the pre-wedding parties followed us, and our cab driver said it was a locals only type of place (the next day). Because of the casual setting, we got to interact a bunch more with actual Irish people in flesh and blood. We met a small group of Irish police officers who were actually pretty fluent in college and professional football. Because they were police officers, they got to do some of the work when President Obama came to Ireland. They had a few stories about his visit.

Sadly Murphys had last call a bit too soon, but we definitely enjoyed our little night in Galway.