Shawn and I were both really looking forward to our trip to the Guinness Storehouse, so we waited until our last day. We went first thing in the morning when they opened and there were already a ton of people there! This is a really impotant time in Ireland for Guinness because on Sept 24th the country is celebrating 250 years of Guinness. Arthur Guinness opened his Guinness Brewery in Dublin back in 1759. When he did this he signed a 9000 year lease for the site (a copy of this lease is on display in the storehouse and you can buy it in the gift shop). The brewery has been in operation now for 250 years...pretty amazing! There is going to be a worldwide celebration at 17:59 (5:15pm) on Sept 24th to all toast Arthur Guinness. The dark stout/porter that everyone associates with Guinness wasn't actually created until the early-1800's, Guinness originally created an ale, but the creation of the signature stout has been what helped Guinness to maintain the legacy for so long.
The Guinness Storehouse is a 7 story building in the St. James Gate area of Dublin (not the nicest neighborhood, but we were there during the daylight!). The 7th floor is called the Gravity Bar and everyone who comes to the Storehouse gets a complimentary pint of Guinness in the bar before leaving. The first few floors of the building are devoted to telling you about the Guinness making process. I never knew what a "hop" was, but now I do! It is really interesting and there is even a large indoor waterfall! After this portion there is a Tasting Lab. They explain to you how to taste the beer to get the full effect. Smell...swirl then smell...taste. We tried it. Then we tried another time! haha! It was free so might as well try a few :)
After we finished touring the building we stopped in the area called "Pour you own Pint." In this area you are taught how to properly pour a pint of Guiness. We had noticed since arrival in Ireland that they take their time in pouring a pint of Guinness. The first pub we went to we though the bartender had forgotten Shawn's drink because he started it and then went to do a crossword puzzle! Turns out this is the technique! The first part of the pour released nitrogen and carbon dioxide gases into the beer. This helps to create the signature "head" of the beer. You then let the beer settle for 2 minutes at least. In the picture below the beer to the far right (mine) is just starting to settle. See how the darkest portion is at the bottom and you can see the swirls of different colors in the glass? The beer to the far left has already settled and is ready to be completed. To finish the pour you push the handle of the tap away from you instead of toward you. This released beer into the glass but no more gas. Perfect Pour. We did it and we got certificates! Now we are skilled at pouring Guinness and experts at Whiskey!
There is a Brewery Bar on the 5th floor of the building where all the food is made with Guinness in some way. We had lunch there because in the Pour you own Pint area a couple came through that didn't like Guinness so they gave us their pints. Nice! We each got 2 for free and we drank them fairly quickly. Especially considering that beer in Ireland has a higher alcohol content than we're used to...we were feeling a bit tipsy! I am not a typically a big fan of Guinness but this fresh Guinness from the brewery itself was pretty good! I was pleasantly surprised. They also make a variety of Guinness Stout that you can't buy in the USA so we bought 2 bottles to bring home. After a stop in the gift shop we headed out for a long walk...we walked so much on this trip!
After we finished touring the building we stopped in the area called "Pour you own Pint." In this area you are taught how to properly pour a pint of Guiness. We had noticed since arrival in Ireland that they take their time in pouring a pint of Guinness. The first pub we went to we though the bartender had forgotten Shawn's drink because he started it and then went to do a crossword puzzle! Turns out this is the technique! The first part of the pour released nitrogen and carbon dioxide gases into the beer. This helps to create the signature "head" of the beer. You then let the beer settle for 2 minutes at least. In the picture below the beer to the far right (mine) is just starting to settle. See how the darkest portion is at the bottom and you can see the swirls of different colors in the glass? The beer to the far left has already settled and is ready to be completed. To finish the pour you push the handle of the tap away from you instead of toward you. This released beer into the glass but no more gas. Perfect Pour. We did it and we got certificates! Now we are skilled at pouring Guinness and experts at Whiskey!
There is a Brewery Bar on the 5th floor of the building where all the food is made with Guinness in some way. We had lunch there because in the Pour you own Pint area a couple came through that didn't like Guinness so they gave us their pints. Nice! We each got 2 for free and we drank them fairly quickly. Especially considering that beer in Ireland has a higher alcohol content than we're used to...we were feeling a bit tipsy! I am not a typically a big fan of Guinness but this fresh Guinness from the brewery itself was pretty good! I was pleasantly surprised. They also make a variety of Guinness Stout that you can't buy in the USA so we bought 2 bottles to bring home. After a stop in the gift shop we headed out for a long walk...we walked so much on this trip!The next place we went is a old renovated prison called Kilmainham Gaol (pronounced Kill-may-ham Jail). This has housed many Irish political prisoners over the years of rebellion in Ireland as well as during Irish Civil War. There is a ton of Irish history in this place...I could totally ace an Irish history test at this point! This jail has also been used in several films so if it looks familiar that is why.
For dinner we went to a restaurant called the Church. It is called the Church because it used to be a church. Now it is a restaurant, bar and night club. It was so cool. Our dinner table was right in front of the old church pipe organ. The bar was really cool. The food was decent, but the atmosphere made up for it. We had planned to go to a Temple Bar pub crawl after dinner, but after all the walkind of the day we could imagine walking anymore! After we got back the hotel we just decided to relax and enjoy our last night of our honeymoon together.
We walked to Phoenix Park after the jail. The house of the Irish President is in this park as well as the Dublin Zoo. We wanted to go to the zoo, but we ran out of time! Boo! Next time :) This statue is in the center of the park.
For dinner we went to a restaurant called the Church. It is called the Church because it used to be a church. Now it is a restaurant, bar and night club. It was so cool. Our dinner table was right in front of the old church pipe organ. The bar was really cool. The food was decent, but the atmosphere made up for it. We had planned to go to a Temple Bar pub crawl after dinner, but after all the walkind of the day we could imagine walking anymore! After we got back the hotel we just decided to relax and enjoy our last night of our honeymoon together. We are headed back home today. See you all soon!
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