Thanks Michele!

Firstly it's a huge thrill for me to have one my trips posted on your blog. Seriously my wife asked me last night why I was smiling from ear to ear when I went to bed last night.

Also I'm really happy about this "craft beer" resurgence that is happening in Ireland. It's just one more reason for me to keep returning to this place that I really love. In many ways it mirrors what has happened in the US. First there was consolidation and a drastic reduction of the number of smaller/local breweries. In the US by the 1970's it narrowed down to something like 40 breweries throughout the US and in Ireland it was even less. Now the US is up over 3,000 with incredibly variety and now Ireland is coming along (on it's own scale of course). This is a big deal because when it comes to certain things (like beer on draught for instance), Ireland is very conservative and slow to change. Partly why we love the place I suppose.

I love Guinness by the way but I always found myself getting sick of it after a few days into each trip and Carlsberg is a poor alternative IMO. Now in many places you can get beer on tap from some of these outstanding local breweries. Just this year a new brewery opened up in County Mayo on a small farm between Castlebar and Westport and they've managed to already get their beers on tap at places like Matt Molloy's, The Wyatt Hotel (Cobblers bar), and McGings. You probably already know about the Dingle brewery and their really nice Tom Crean's lager. Roadside Tavern/Burren Brewery in Lisdoonvarna .... and the list keeps growing. Actually I'll add that for those visiting Doolin this year that are curious about Irish microbrews I recommend popping into Fitzpatrick's bar because they've got quite a good selection of different beers including one that I think the Burren Brewery makes specifically for their bar.