Abbey Tavern-Beamish Stout

Today marks my first beer outside of Dublin, and I enjoyed this one with a dinner of fish and chips at the Abbey Tavern in Howth, a fishing villiage 30 minutes from Dublin. Becky and I came to this place after our seaside hike, which I'll share more about shortly. The tavern itself was absolutely incredible. Soft lighting, classic big band jazz music, and a real turf fire made our meal the best way to relax after our long day. Anyone visiting Howth and looking for a spectacular meal in a cozy locale should pay this place a visit.

As for the beer, it was served on nitrogen and was opaque black, as you would expect with a stout. The aroma was yeasty and bready with a hint of coffee. Upon sipping the first thing I noticed was the foam. It was incredibly thick, but quite fluffy and even left me with a bit of a mustache. The best way to describe it would be comparing it to a coffee mousse. After the foam you get an upfront astringency or bitterness. It is somewhat harsh, but not undesirable. It seemed similar to a hop flavor, but was more likely some of the burnt smoky flavors from the roasted malts. After that upfront burst, it mellows considerably into a light coffee finish with no bitterness. Compared to Guinness, I liked this more. The flavor had a little more depth and changed throughout while I find Guinness' flavor to be a bit more uniform. Many have called this beer "poor man's Guinness", but if I had to choose between the two, I would rather have this. One thing to note, is that this beer is owned by Heineken, so like Guinness it is not really a craft beer. I will try to include more true craft beers in future posts, but unfortunately, many of the pubs I've been to thus far have had a limited selection.

These past few days have been packed full of travel. On Friday, my whole apartment took a guided tour to Galway. Our first stop was in the town of Cong. Here we got to walk the grounds of Ashford Castle, an Anglo-Norman structure that has since been renovated into a five star resort. Additionally in the town, there was a 12th century abbey, and some picturesque views.

After Cong, we drove through Connemara National Park. We stopped every few minutes to take pictures and absorbed in the whole scenery, which impressed us at every turn with its lakes, mountains, and lots of sheep.

Our final stop on the tour was in Galway where we had a few hours to walk around. The city itself was much like a college town and only had one major shopping street where everyone seemed to congregate. Even though this was the ultimate destination of the tour, I preferred the first two stops more. In light of that, Galway was a very pretty place, and is worth a visit if in the area.

On Saturday, Becky and I went back to Trinity College, this time to see the Book of Kells, a 9th century illuminated manuscript. No photography was allowed, but the book was impressive, and the rooms preceding it were very informative into how illuminated manuscripts were made and the historical context to the Book of Kells. Upstairs from that, is the Long Library where old books tower to the ceilings and busts of ancient philosophers and famous Irishmen line your walk. Here too is the "Harp of Brian Boru". This harp is the one depicted on the Euro coin for Ireland as well as Guinness' logo.

Sunday we went to the National Gallery of Art, which was surprisingly small, and some of it was being renovated, leaving us with a short visit. In light of this, we saw a Monet, Picasso, and Van Gogh. Furthermore there were paintings by the Dubliner Jack Butler Yeats. This museum was free to the public, which is always nice.

Yesterday was the first day of classes, and I had my first as well, Management Accounting. Shouldn't be too difficult, and I was able to start learning the campus a little better. That night we went to a club called Dicey's Gardens, and what awaited us is hard to describe. People were packed in everywhere, and we later learned this was the busiest night of the year. For me, it was a little too hectic and loud, but others definitely seemed to be enjoying themselves.

And finally, today was Howth. This fishing village is just a 30 minute train ride from Dublin, and upon arrival we were amazed how much the town looked like your stereotypical fishing village. In the harbor were hundreds of sailboats. While sailing may have been nice, our visit was for hiking. Howth has 4 different trails that ascend the rocky coastline offering absolutely spectacular views. My only warning is to dress warmly, the wind blows hard on the coast, which made it quite chilly. In light of that, this may have been my favorite day in Ireland yet.