Ireland (Winter 2023) - Dublin (Day 1)

*First pint (of many) in Ireland*

*Everything was expensive in Dublin except for drinking - at least they have their priorities in order*

So let’s get one thing out of the way. The Guinness does not taste better in Ireland. It tastes the same as what I’ve had here in the US.

As long as the pourer knows what they are doing, you’re going to get a good pint of Guinness.

It may be more fun to drink it in Ireland, but my own tastebuds and some friendly locals here confirmed that it tastes the same.

(On a side note, I was told that there is a place where the Guinness is different: Nigeria. Apparently the Guinness brewed there has a higher ABV to appeal to the preferences there.)

Tickets to Dublin were ridiculously cheap at the end of 2023 so when trying to decide where to go on vacation, the pocketbook pretty much made the decision for us - Europe it is.

*River Liffey*

*Bus from the airport to Central Dublin was €7. It was very easy to get into the center of town after landing.*

We used Dublin as the entry point and hit Europe for a 3 week swing through a few cities before returning to Dublin again for the return leg of the round trip flight.

Brazen Head

So why not get oldest bar in Dublin out of the way first? You’ll note that the sign says the “Oldest in Ireland” - not just Dublin. I guess there is some dispute as later we went to a bar in Athlone that claims to be the “Oldest in the World” which I assume encompasses Ireland.

This was a great place to start drinking in Ireland. The bar is historic and has a bunch of small rooms with bars and tables in every room. The room pictured here is the oldest room.

I imagine this place could get crowded and touristy but we were day drinking here early on a weekday and it was the perfect place to get the day started after checking into the hotel.

Dublin One / O’Connell Street Districts

Since this hotel was north of the river, this was the first place that we explored. Walked along the river heading east, you run into the Dublin One Market District which is lined with small shops as well as global brands.

At the end of the walk you hit the spire which marks O’Connell Street with its own collection of bars and restaurants.

Brannigans

The sign said “Bar” and “Food” - 2 of my favorite things!

Needing some grub after the afternoon walk, we stopped in this place for a sandwich. I found that I had an affinity to these “toasties” and would get several more on this trip. It is a perfect bar snack. I will say that I’m more of a skinny fries kind of guy and they tend to like these thicker steak fries here in Ireland.

The other thing I learned as I tried different beers is that Guinness pretty makes almost all of them. There are a few exceptions but if it’s on the tap - it’s probably from Guinness. There are some microbrews popping up and Beamish would probably be the non-Guinness beer you run into most often.

I also learned that a lot of the Irish whiskey brands are made by Jameson’s as well. They had a brand of Jameson’s called Crested which I had not seen in the US. I believe it is aged in different barrels (and I think longer) than the regular Jameson’s.

Confession Box

Confession Box was a classic local bar. Not too many tourists in here. There was also an upstairs here that I was too lazy to check out (can blame the jetlag). The vibe was an after work crowd gathering to start the night with some pints.

They had their own brand of whiskey here so of course I had to try it. It was actually pretty good. It tasted more like a scotch because it had a slight hint of peat to it but finished like an Irish whiskey.

At this point in the night we were searching out different pubs to hit so we can just stay awake. If we went back to the room we would have fell asleep and it was only 6 PM - too early to go to bed so just needed to suck it up, down some pints, and keep our eyes open to get adjusted to the time difference.

Oval Bar

From the outside this pub had a classier look and inside it did look brighter and fresher than most pubs. They had a pretty decent whiskey collection but alas no whiskey list or menu.

Had a 1/2 pint and some whiskey (I felt that having a whiskey made the 1/2 pint of beer more respectable).

Besides us, it was just the regular locals having pints and watching soccer (or I guess “football”).

Cobblestone

The last stop of the night. At this point I’m nodding off with a drink in my hand.

Cobblestone was also the busiest place that we went to that day. Some places have music on certain nights but the Cobblestone I believe has it every night so it gets pretty crowded.

We were lucky to find a few empty seats in the back where we could rest the drinks on the counter and soak in the atmosphere. The music sounded like what it was, just random people sitting down and jamming a bit and the imperfections made it feel more authentic and Irish if that makes any sense.