Messrs Maguire, Dublin

During our initial bus ride through Dublin I spied the Messrs Maguire sign through the window and tried to make mental note of where it was; a pointless endeavour at the time as I had no reference or knowledge of the city. Messrs Maguire’s is Dublin's only brewpub so it was a "must stop" location for me. We would pass by the pub located on the bank of the Liffy several times during our time in Dublin, but it wasn't until we returned to the city on the last day of our trip that I was finally able to visit.

We spent a lot of time deciding on our lunch, and our beer selections. Finally, we all decided on roast beef sandwiches served on fresh baked french bread, with chips and crisps of course. We had a slight delay in getting our food as we had to wait for a batch of bread to come out of the oven!

I opted for the Pale Ale, served cask-conditioned and dry hopped. This American style ale was very aromatic with the fresh hops evident. The flavor started of with a rich "green" hop flavor followed by a bitter finish. We had a long day of walking ahead of us, surely with other pub stops, and I had to fight the urge for a second round.

Colleen opted for the Hickey's Irish Red, of which I stole a few sips of as well. This was also an enjoyable red ale. Malt rich with a slightly nutty flavor and sweet finish, it was a good accompaniment to the beef sandwiches, and the chips soaked in malt vinegar. 

Two Beers & A Cider. Photo by C. Turley

While we waited for our food, I went exploring around three floors of the pub. We had ordered our food and drink on the ground floor, where one can see the brewery in action, and walked up to the first floor "Library Bar" to eat. The second floor (that's the 3rd to us yanks) overlooks the Liffy River. Each floor has a long bar located against one side, and there were numerous secluded and open seating areas. At one point I emerged from the stairwell and was momentarily unsure which floor I was on. Messrs Maguire also has a basement brewery bar, giving four whole floors worth of pub space.

As with much of our whirlwind trip, we stayed at Messrs Maguire only long enough to get a small taste before moving on to other sights and tastes of Ireland. It's a place I'll visit again if, or when, we return to Ireland.