Beer of the Week - Murphy's Irish Stout

Last night before the Toronto Rock game, Teena and I went to The Strath Pub in the Strathacona Hotel for supper. On tap they offer two stouts, Guinness and Murphy's Irish Stout. I've had many a pint of Guinness in my time so thought I would try the Murphy's.

Murphy's Brewery was founded in 1856 in Cork, Ireland, by, of course, a family called Murphy. It was built on an old hospital site that on the land just above it had a well that was known as the Lady's Well, whose waters were said to have miraculous powers. The brewery was known as Lady's Well Brewery, named after this well.

The brewery was successful and under went major expansion in the 1880s. Lady's Well first started producing their stout in 1889. In 1983, the brewery was bought out by Heineken, who changed the name of the brewery to Murphy's Brewery. Heineken's Irish head office is located in the brewery in Cork.

And the taste?

Murphy's Stout is black with a very smooth and creamy brownish head. The sides of my glass are covered in a veil of lacings after each sip. It is a very drinkable beer. As dark as it is, there is no heaviness to it.

I found a pronounced tone of chocolate in each sip. There is a little subtle bitterness to this, but it is much sweeter that it's Guinness rival.

This is a beer that I would have anytime I saw it on tap. I quite enjoyed it.


Beer of the Week Stats 

Beers Profiled 266 
Breweries 236 
Countries 47

Beer of the Week, Kilkenny Irish Cream Ale

It is Superbowl weekend and my friend, Craig, is holding our Superbowl party at his place in Ajax.

This means I have to drive.

This means I have to be careful so I decided to pick up a light alcohol beer to have during the first part of the game. I decided on the 4.3% Kilkenny Irish Cream Ale.

This beer is brewed by Diagio the same company that makes Guinness, Harp and Smithwick's.  The brand name has been around since 1710 and is still brewed in Kilkenny at Ireland's oldest operating brewery. Kilkenny follows the same history as Smithwick's which I have featured before.

Kilkenny Irish Cream Ale comes in a 440ml can which contains the same widget used in Guinness to get a creamy smooth head. While Ireland is the main market for this beer, it turns out that Australia and Canada are its largest importers. I do not know how they are packed for sale in Ireland or Australia but here in Canada $10.95 buys a 4 pack

I am surprised I have not had one before as I have seen it at many pubs before, just have ordered something else instead.  It should be interesting to give it a try.

When the can is opened you can hear the widget go into action, the same sound as when a can of Guinness is opened.

The beer pours amber in colour with a very creamy head. The glass needs to sit for a minute or so as the "storm" of downward racing bubbles needs to settle. There is a nice aroma to this but I cannot place it. I am not sure if sipping the beer through the foam is what gives this ale its creaminess but it has a very creamy mouthfeel. I expected a sweeter beer but this is slightly bitter with a small dose of bitterness in the finish.

I really like this beer which proves once again as others have that a lighter alcohol beer can have lots of flavour. A beer for Sunday's when one has to work the next day.

Beer of the Week Stats 

Beers Profiled 194 
Breweries 177 
Countries 37

Beer of the Week - Smithwicks

So St Patrick's Day has come and gone so I thought I would take a look at which Irish beers I have written about.

Wow! Was I surprised to discover that I had yet to feature one from Ireland. Knowing this, I headed out to right a wrong. It was time to do an Irish beer.

When one thinks of Ireland and beer, Guinness Stout comes to mind and I have had many of them in my day! In 1778, Arthur Guinness started brewing and selling his new stout now known as Guinness. His was not the first beer brewed and still being brewed in Ireland. Although bought out by Guinness in 1964, Swithwick's (pronounced as 'Smithicks' or 'Smitticks') is considered the oldest Irish operating brewery and beer recipe.

John Smithwick and Richard Cole opened the brewery in 1710 in Kilkenny in St. Francis Abbey. In those days, it seemed that laws disallowed putting personal names on companies. I am unsure what happened to Richard Cole but John Smithwick was known as quite the businessman so it is likely that he just bought out Richard's interest in the brewery.

John's grandson, John Smithwick II, took over the brewery in the late 1700s and, as soon as the laws changed in Ireland, renamed the brewery Smithwick's Brewery. He also bought the land the brewery sat on. Since its opening, 9 generations of Smithwicks have been in control of the company over its 302 year history.

These days most of the Smithwicks beer is brewed in Dundalk but a small amount is still being brewed in Kilkenny for the local market.

The Smithwicks website has a much more detailed version of its company's history.

I saw that Smithwicks is now sold buy the can at the LCBO. Before and I'm really not sure about this, it was only available on draught. So I thought why not do a comparison while I'm at it? A great place to try the draught was on the patio of the Foggy Dew in my hood. So off I went!

I found a spot in the sun and ordered up a Smithwicks. It was a perfect pour which came to the table, a full glass with just the right amount of head. It was a brownish, coppery colour with a slightly off white head. Sheets of lacings lined the glass. The head and beer are quite creamy in texture, something I did not expect. It starts off a little sweet and finishes with a mild bitterness. It is an excellent sessionable pub ale.

To ensure I had my notes right, I had another before walking back home with the taste still lingering on my tongue. Once home, I cracked open a can of Smithwicks, rinsed my mouth and sat down for a taste. The beer poured the same and I managed to get the same perfect head that the one at the Dew had.

The canned Smithwicks had the same taste, starting slightly sweet and finishing with a slight bitterness, but lacked that creamy texture for the mouth feel. I found that I missed it. The glass still had thick lacings along it so there couldn't be a difference in the malt. My guess is that the system used to dispense the draught version must use the same combination of nitrogen and carbon dioxide gas that is used to pour Guinness Stout.

So my verdict is that Smithwicks is a very nice draught to have at a pub but I'll pass on bringing any home in the can.

Happy (belated) St Patricks Day!

Beer of the Week Stats

Beers Profiled 153
Countries 31
Breweries 131
Provinces 8