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A Visit to Antwerp, and Billie’s Craft Beer Fest

November 17, 2025 by Lisa Grimm

Beer festivals aren’t to everyone’s taste, especially the very large ones. And while there are many similarities to these bigger festivals wherever you go – larger blokes with beards, queues for the hype beers, crowds – there’s one way they do things differently in Antwerp. I speak, of course, of cheese and charcuterie.

A few of us made our way to Antwerp for a long weekend built around Billie’s Craft Beer Fest; our stalwart guide, Charlotte, is originally from Antwerp, and has been attending with her father for years, and so had all the useful insider knowledge and protips. Said father also joined us at the festival, and was an absolute delight, but before we get to the festival, a little bit of our touring around Antwerp.

Several of the non-beery tourist sites were closed for renovation, so we couldn’t take in the Rubenshuis or Museum Vleeshuis, but we did make the most of our visit to the De Koninck Brewery. Yes, it’s very much like other brewery tours, but it was quite enjoyable, and the area around the old brewery is being redeveloped in a way that’s not dissimilar to the area around the Carlsberg complex in Copenhagen – there’s a fancy bakery, chocolate, cheese, a high-end butcher and new housing going up in the immediate vicinity. During our stay, we took in a good mix of modern beer bars and traditional cafes, with the standouts including Spéciale Belge, Café Pardaf, which reminded us so much of our own much-missed Underdog, and, of course, Billie’s itself. All were busier than usual with so many beer nerds in town for the festival, and there were a few tap takeovers that were a wee bit extra, but the selection beyond those was excellent.

We also took in Elfde Gebod for its mix of more traditional Belgian beers and religious statuary – really, a must-visit for anyone coming from Ireland, just for the ex-religious kitsch vibes, as well as Het Oud Aresenaal for more of the old-school vibe. There was a bit of shopping as well, as Antwerp has a Uniqlo; something we still don’t have in Dublin, for reasons passing understanding, and given the very mild weather (we sat outside for multiple meals and snacks), lighter layers were required.

Billie’s Craft Beer Fest itself is held in a former dockside warehouse that is now a modern events space, and in comparison to most beer festivals, the setup is very sophisticated. One half of the space is dedicated to the food and ‘relaxing’ part of the festival, with a giant tent (although you are indoors), a variety of seating options and a cloakroom, while the ‘serving’ bit is the more typical arrangement of stalls manned by brewery staffers. Long tables with chairs line the sides of that part of the venue, but we mostly kept to our table on the other side, where it was quieter. Yes, that made for longer walks to get more beer, but that’s really a good thing – you’re getting your steps in, and it gives you a good opportunity to evaluate whether or not you really should have more water or food first before getting more to drink. This festival comes with a water bottle, and there are handy water stations positioned throughout the space – something we keep offering as feedback to the Dublin Beer Festival, but which never seems to be taken on board.

There are also SEPARATE GLASS-RINSING STATIONS – another concept that our local festival would do well to learn from; as-is, there is only a sort of trough with water taps that serves both purposes and well…that’s not great. Another ‘best practice’ at Billie’s is the all-inclusive nature of the event – you get a reasonably-sized small glass and can try anything that’s tapped, while in Dublin, you pay separately for a pint or half-pint…which is already too much for a festival (and yes, that’s after you’ve already bought a ticket to get in). The food is not included in your ticket to Billie’s, but the various food trucks were reasonably priced, and the tacos were excellent; oddly, the best tacos I’ve had recently have been in Antwerp and Stuttgart – who knew that continental Europe was getting to be so good at tacos?

And that’s where the other protip comes in – yes, there’s good food available for purchase, but the really clever attendees all came prepared, with huge slabs of cheese and various meats, breads and crackers. Clearly, this is the way. And we’ll put it to the test ourselves (hopefully) next year; we had such a good time we booked our tickets for next year’s event, too.

We never did get around to trying the hype breweries with the long queues, but none of them had much we were keen to try, anyway…and with so many interesting options on offer, there’s not much point in waiting in a line when you can simply walk up to get your sample. And my favourites were all, well, normal. Hungary’s Brew Your Mind had a few outstanding IPAs, and Third Moon from Canada had a ‘New Zealand Pilsner’ that I absolutely loved. A pumpkin beer from Cervesas Speranto (nil points for guessing Spain) was also a standout. Yes, there were a few barleywines and eisbocks that it was great to try in very small amounts, but the people who enjoy queueing are free to enjoy their double pastry sours/stouts/etc without my interference.

And finally, the other reason this was great fun? Our all-female group (Charlotte’s father notwithstanding) never had to queue for the toilets (which were very clean and did not become unusable as the festival progressed, as can happen elsewhere) – that was left to the men at the festival. Zero complaints. We made it back from Belgium just in time for the final night at Underdog…a sad way to cap off a glorious weekend, but very much a community event.

The Session #149: Pub Food (Pub Food!)

July 24, 2025 by Lisa Grimm

Exciting times: I have successfully remembered that #TheSession is happening! We’ve made it to #149: Pub Food (Pub Food!)* David Jesudason is our genial host this time, and his entry on pizza is an inspired start. I do love a good pub pizza: here in Dublin, we have some excellent options: MeMa’s and The Morris Bar both have fantastic pizza (hot honey? Yes, please), and Rascals is well worth the bus ride for both the beer and pizza.

But good beer and pizza – my favourite night-before-a-race meal – is not the main focus for this instalment of #TheSession. Rather, I’m taking the opportunity to bang the drum for my longstanding idée fixe: all pubs, everywhere, should have soft pretzels.

Hear me out: they can be parbaked and frozen, and warmed up in a relatively smallish toaster oven or even a microwave. They are the perfect salty snack, with enough heft to nearly be a meal – ideal to keep punters in the pub, while also keeping them from getting, well, messy. And here in Ireland, they could be paired with some absolutely phenomenal local cheeses, or even cheese dips. Yes, there are excellent pretzels at the Guinness Open Gate, but outside of Oktoberfest season, when there are some pretzel specials, they are essentially the only pretzel game in town.

WE CAN DO BETTER.

There are even pretzel beers in our former Pennsylvania stomping grounds in America (though I must confess that the Philadelphia version of the soft pretzel is not my favourite – sorry/not sorry), but really, it’s more about pairing the gently-warmed pretzel with the beer. Well, and the salt. The salt is not unimportant here. Arguably, that’s what I find missing from the toastie, which, perhaps, best fills the pretzel spot in the hospitality ecosystem in Ireland. I do enjoy a good toastie, but the saltiness of the pretzel is a big part of its appeal.

It’s possible I have looked into what it would cost to import frozen pretzels from Germany and decided that it’s not worthwhile to keep them in my personal freezer (if anything, they would be immediately consumed by the rest of the family), but a locally-produced option that supplied area pubs would be amazing. It would be the perfect excuse to stop into a pub for a midweek snack, without having to fork out for an entire dinner – a pretzel is good any time of day or night.

We are, again, fortunate that we have many pubs with great food options beyond the standard burger-and-chips pub grub (as well as some truly excellent burgers – The Old Spot burger is wonderful) – there’s tasty Asian street food at The Barber’s Bar and Hynes’ Bar, and lots of carvery options. While I don’t personally understand the appeal of a carvery, clearly, they are very popular here, but pretzels, nope.

It’s now been a good many months since I last had a soft pretzel** (in Zurich, for the record, after some work things and an impromptu tour of the FIFA Museum in which not a single person tried to bribe me), but fortunately, I do have more pretzels on the horizon in the near future, as I’m off to Germany on holiday.

Perhaps everyone could compare recipes while I’m out of town, and surprise me when I get home? I’d be happy to taste-test any and all efforts…

*For reasons not entirely clear even to me, I cannot see the words ‘pub food’ without hearing my brain repeat it, to the tune of Lovefool by The Cardigans – this is especially odd as my favourite Cardigans songs are Carnival and Hey! Get Out Of My Way, from 1995’s Life. This remains, objectively, their best album. People holding other opinions on this subject are simply wrong.

** Yes, there are Auntie Anne’s pretzels in Ireland, but no, those don’t count, as they are, frankly, garbage, and not available in pubs.

The Session #145: The Nuances of Critique in a Small Market

March 28, 2025 by Lisa Grimm

Another entry for The Session – this time, Matthew Curtis has set an interesting challenge for #145.

Ireland is, in a word, small. The craft beer industry here is, unsurprisingly, also not large, and because of the size of the market, it is even more difficult for smaller producers to get tap space at most pubs and bars, or in typical off-licenses, corner shops and supermarkets. But while there are opportunities for independent brewers to get onto some supermarket shelves through initiatives like SuperValu’s Food Academy – something that doesn’t come with the ‘selling out’ baggage that seems to accompany wider availability in larger markets like the UK – it can be tough for those brewers to break into the larger public consciousness. Diageo and Heineken’s marketing budgets are orders of magnitude larger, and when ‘a pint’ in a pub means the same beer to most people, it’s a big mountain to climb.

The careful reader will notice that there are some breweries and venues I rarely, if ever, mention, and there’s probably a good reason for that; certain omissions are very much intentional. And I’ve absolutely told some producers directly if I’ve had an issue with a batch or found a particular venue whose taplines seemed muddy; people have appreciated the direct, if offline, communication to improve their product. And there’s also bit of judgement involved there; the larger (though really, still small) brewers have QA setups and actively want to know these things, while some of the smaller outfits may need that kind of news broken more gently – but no one wants to have a bad product out there. And credit where it’s due – you’re not going to get a ‘bad’ Guinness or Carlsberg in 99% of venues (and to be clear, I like Guinness and Carlsberg – but I don’t want them to be the only choices). Huge global brewers of their sort are often much more stable employers, because they can afford to be, and both do amazing things with their corporate history and archives; these are very positive things.

And so when it comes to offering constructive critiques of the industry, especially as a blow-in, it’s something I personally tend to do at more of a macro level, in one very specific area: the availability (or lack thereof) of independent Irish beer offerings in pubs and bars. Places that formerly had a more diverse lineup are very much in my line of fire, and it’s not only because it’s not great for the broader brewing community, it’s terrible for the consumer. The lack of imagination around what punters might enjoy took some time for me to get used to, having previously lived in the US and UK, where there would usually be at least a token local craft beer on in most bars and restaurants, if not a much more impressive lineup beyond that. And yes, tourists are all convinced that there’s a ‘best’ pint of Guinness to be found here; as an initial revenue-generation point, have at it. I’ll absolutely allow the ‘Guinness tastes better in Ireland’ purely from a ‘clean taplines and great atmosphere’ perspective, but many visitors want to sample other ‘local’ products, and all too often, there isn’t anything else. It’s a missed opportunity. And, as such, it deserves to be called out. For example, replacing a wider array of brewers and styles with some not-terribly-well-executed nor well-priced ‘house beers’ ain’t it. House beers you’ll continue to tweak and have as part of a broader lineup? Sure, go for it.

In summary, I believe the Irish beer industry is just about at the point where it’s mature enough to handle more robust public critiques aimed at improving the overall product…almost. While the crew of independent producers and distributors is so small that it’s easy to meet and get to know nearly everyone relatively quickly, it takes a lot longer to build up credibility and to earn trust, especially as an outsider. There’s also something here about not quite staying in your lane, but knowing when and where to share certain opinions. John and Liam can be entirely candid on their respective blogs because they’ve been doing amazing work for years. And, to a certain extent, we’ve all specialised a bit – I’ve got the pubs thing going, John’s doing amazing reviews and commentary, and Liam’s stellar Irish beer history work is, well, just that. And we are so fortunate to have writers like Ali Dunworth covering Irish food and drink in books and magazines, and, of course, my fellow Beer Lady* Christina Wade kicking ass and taking names in the beer history book department. As they drive broader normal-person public awareness, we’ll (eventually) be at that point where Irish beer criticism is as natural and welcomed as restaurant criticism. There will be positives, negatives and, most likely, a fair few ‘mids’ out there, but it will be a sign of growth overall; I’m looking forward to a few rather glorious tasting notes all across that spectrum getting out of private group chats (no, really) and into the wider world.

*We’ll be back with new Beer Ladies Podcast episodes soon! We’ve, uh, all had a lot on. And it is worth noting that we are a lot more vocal about certain trends or issues on the podcast…strength in numbers, or something along those lines…

The Session #144: A Welcome Return

March 27, 2025February 27, 2025 by Lisa Grimm

The Session is back! I missed its most recent return last month (I blame holidays) and nearly missed it again (general life stuff), but managed find a brief window to put something together. The question posed is quite a simple one, and thanks to Ray & Jess for the prompt:

What’s the best beer you can drink at home right now?

And while the answer to the question itself is going to be quite straightforward, the context for drinking-at-home is a little more complex than it might sound, at least, in my interpretation. You see, I have a practically-pathological avoidance of ‘going out on Friday.’ On one hand this is because I AM TIRED by Friday afternoon, even during the most perfectly productive and easily-planned week possible. On the other hand, I believe that I have been thoroughly conditioned into this sort of schedule: back in the 1990s, that’s when all the good telly was on. The Fast Show, Shooting Stars, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Father Ted, Eurotrash and more were Friday night staples (only season two of Fortean TV made the Friday night schedule, as I’m sure my fellow weirdos recall); going out seemed like a waste in a pre-on demand era. If you missed these shows, what might you have to talk about in the pub when you did go out? And so, as someone whose ‘going out’ patterns were built and hardened as a postgrad in the UK during that time period…well, Friday night has always been Pizza Night.

These days, it’s…well, not rather more sedate, since it was largely that way to begin with, but it does involve better pizza and more child-friendly programming (or did, until said children got ‘old’ themselves and/or bored with our viewing choices – I have no regrets about saving The Great Pottery Throw-down or other life-affirming programming for this use case every week). When Friday rolls around, we order pizza and have a few beers. I always like to have at least one Irish beer to kick off the evening, and then I may have a more ‘exotic’ follow-up, but I have the following in constant Friday night rotation:

1) Ballykilcavan Bambrick’s Brown Ale, 5.8% – probably the most perfect ‘all-weather’ Irish beer; goes with nearly everything, and great to pair with dessert, too, if I remembered to pick some up. It’s also a great ‘at home’ beer as it’s rarely on tap anywhere around Dublin…but there are a few sneaky cans at Juno, just a short walk away. If you haven’t visited the gorgeous farm, well – do make it a priority if you’re in or visiting Ireland. Say hi to Cleo; she’s a proper doggy celebrity now.
2) Rascals Sidekick IPA, 5.3% – gather around, children, and you’ll hear the tale of how IPAs used to be clear and bitter, but with a nice malty heft to them. Relive that experience at home, with this wonderfully balanced beer – pour it from the can into a glass, hold it up to the light and look through! While this does appear on tap at Rascals itself as part of their regular lineup now, it’s not flip-flops distance like Juno; I love it on tap, but it’s a must-have for a relaxed Friday night at home.
3) Hope Limited Edition 34 ESB, 5.9% – yes, I understand the meaning of ‘limited edition,’ but I also live in hope (see what I did there?) that it may make regular re-appearances, and I’ve stocked up for the near term. It’s another goes-with-everything beer, and seems universally praised by those who have tried it – it’s not just me.

With some sort of must-do, scheduled event most other nights of the week, Pizza Night every Friday is a much-needed time to unwind and do a bit of semi-intentional carbo-loading before Parkrun on Saturday and whatever long-distance training is in the books for Sunday. Having the opportunity to support some fantastic independent Irish breweries from the comfort of your own couch is a great bonus.

Everything pairs well with loungewear.

Book & Beer Year in Review, 2024

December 22, 2024 by Lisa Grimm

When I began compiling the annual summary, I quickly realized that nearly every trip, whether work-related or extracurricular, had a significant library- or bookshop-related element. Yes, there were a fair few beer-led short holidays, but things of a literary nature also took up space in the diary (and luggage).

The first little break away in the year was over to Sheffield in March for Indie Beer Feast, accompanying the charming and erudite Christina Wade as she launched her first beer history book (you can pre-order the new one on Irish beer history right now!) – it was a cosy little festival, and we had the opportunity to meet some stalwarts in the beer writing community, all very welcoming and supportive. I especially enjoyed Abbeydale’s Moonshine Pale Ale, but I also took a bit of time out upon arrival to finally visit St Mars of the Desert – getting re-acquainted with their beer was a real delight. I also managed to fit in a bit of Parkrun tourism while in town.

The ‘big’ holiday of the year was Scandinavian: a trip to Malmö and Copenhagen with Katie, taking in Eurovision and the Mikkeller Beer Fest. While the crowds for these events were very different, they were both good fun, if exhausting, and the newly-reopened Carlsberg complex is very much worth a visit. The real ‘discovery’ was Hyllie Bryggeri in Malmö, but getting to enjoy some top-notch beers from Ebeltoft Gårdbryggeri at the festival was also a highlight; two of them feature in my personal top 10 of 2024, which we’ll get to at the end of this wrap-up.

We got properly into the bookish part of the year with a visit to Manchester, taking in both the John Rylands Library and Chetham’s Library, as well as all manner of wonderful independent bookshops. This trip also kicked off my minor obsession with Bird & Blend teas, and was rounded off by stops off at Track Brewing and the Marble Arch Inn. Track seems to have become one of my go-to UK breweries, now that their cans are pretty broadly available here in Ireland (as well as popping up on tap at Underdog) – I’ve yet to have anything from them that wasn’t pleasant.

Toward the end of the summer, while the offspring went off to visit their grandparents in America, we took an adults-only excursion to Bristol and Bath. In Bristol, we had the pleasure of meeting Ray & Jess of Boak & Bailey in person, and gladly accepted their suggestions for all things beer and books in the area. The Bath portion of the trip had been planned around none of the usual Roman or Jane Austen-y sights in town, but rather, a visit to Persephone Books, which was as excellent as expected. Happily, Bath has an even broader range of independent bookshops, so we took in most of those before taking a side quest to the George Inn in Norton St Philip for some medieval pub tourism. Back in Bristol, we also stopped in at Lost & Grounded for their lovely lagers, as well as Left Handed Giant and a number of local pubs. And yes, there was another little bit of Parkrun tourism, and more Bird & Blend teas were purchased.

September was all about running, with a hop over to Newcastle for the Great North Run. A stop off at the Lit & Phil continued the library-visiting theme, and yes, another Parkrun was ticked of the list before the half marathon the next day. But there were also some really lovely pubs in town, with the Free Trade Inn very much at the top of the list, and the Wobbly Duck offered a warm welcome after the long, chilly, wet race. The new Donzoko taproom was perfect for a little bit of carbo-loading the day before, and I’m still impressed by how nice the airport was…I’ll need to find an excuse to visit Durham or other surrounding areas to fly in and out of it again.

We also had an actual beer festival here in Dublin, with some real standouts from Hope, Hopfully and Zichovec…a nice mix of local and visiting breweries. As I couldn’t make it to Hagstravaganza in Sligo this year, getting in a local festival that didn’t involve any travel beyond a quick bus ride was a nice bonus.

I managed to fit in an extremely quick trip to the British Library for the Medieval Women exhibit, and cannot rate it highly enough; if you have the opportunity to visit, don’t miss it, even if you’re not the biggest fan of Margery Kempe – there’s so much more, including my longtime fave, Lady Margaret Beaufort making an appearance. And yes, more Bird & Blend tea as well – we’ve been powering through their excellent advent calendar.

Finally, as the year was winding down, I once again popped over to the Neighbouring Island, this time, via the currently-non-operational ferry route to Wales. My object was Talking Terror at Gladstone’s Library in Hawarden, and both the MR James focus of the event and the opportunity to stay at a residential library lived up to my high expectations. I hope to go back for another edition next year, ideally with a bit more time to stop back in at The Glynne Arms.

And so, without further ado, my top 10 beers of 2024:

10) Rascals Brewing Riptide NZ Pilsner, Ireland, 4.5%
9) Left Handed Giant Dark Mild, UK, 3.4%
8) Pivovar Zichovec Krahulik 12 Czech Pilsner, Czechia, 5.1%
7) Lineman Brewing/Underdog Underline WCIPA, Ireland, 8.3%
6) Track Brewing Halftime Horseman Brown Ale, UK, 4.9%
5) Ebeltoft Gårdbryggeri Pedes Pale Ale, Denmark, 4.6%
4) St Mars of the Desert Laska Pils, UK, 4.8%
3) Track Brewing Zeno Tenth Birthday IPA, UK, 7.2%
2) Hope Beer Limited Edition #34 ESB, Ireland, 5.9%
1) Ebeltoft Gårdbryggeri MBCC Raw Power #1 DIPA with Riwaka, Denmark, 8.3%

I have one more quick trip to London with the smaller child this Twixtmas for theatrical purposes, so may fit in the odd final fave or two before the new year, but in any case, here’s hoping for a great 2025; go buy some books!

Talking Terror at Gladstone’s Library

December 6, 2024 by Lisa Grimm

In late November, I had the pleasure of traveling to Wales for Talking Terror – two days of MR James scholars, enthusiasts and all-around good folk getting to nerd out over the ghost stories and academic interests of James and his circle. The location was Gladstone’s Library in Hawarden, and what a glorious site it is: a residential library, built in 1902 in that particular neo-Gothic style that evokes thoughts of spooky stories, but with a gentle reddish glow from the local sandstone, making it thoroughly warm and welcoming.

Inside, the combination of dark wood and a slightly maze-like layout – we’ll come back to the gorgeous Reading Room later – add to the atmosphere, and while it wears its ecclesiastical associations relatively lightly (and very much more social-justice-spirituality than fire and brimstone), there is that air of ‘church’ that adds a bit of mystery. The rebuilt medieval church of St Deiniol’s, with its tolling bells, and the graveyard behind the building complete the picture.

I have long wanted to visit Gladstone’s Library; indeed, what former archivist/rare book librarian would not relish the opportunity to sleep next to the collections? When the opportunity to combine a visit with some MR James fandom arose, I couldn’t resist. After all, it’s just a ferry-and-train (and taxi) ride away, right?

Well, sort of.

As it turned out, my Irish Ferries journey was delayed by 3 hours in each direction, though it’s still not clear why. There was no obvious ‘weather’ to complicate matters, but it made getting to the first evening’s entertainment (real ones will see what I did there) quite fraught. So while I just managed to squeak in for dinner – Gladstone’s Library keeps you fed, especially when it comes to the dessert courses – it was a much closer-run thing than it should have been. But while I missed some of the opening preliminaries, all was well: I made it in time for Robert Lloyd Perry’s candlelit performance of ‘The Ash Tree’ and ‘Oh, Whistle, and I’ll Come to You, My Lad.’ Any Nunkie theatrical event is a treat, but the fireside setting and shadows from the candles made for especially effective staging; truly unsettling in just the right ways.

I didn’t linger long after the performance that evening, as it had been a very long travel day, and so I retired to my room; simply furnished, but with beautiful leaded windows overlooking the graveyard, and a most welcome bathtub. After an amazing night’s sleep, which was aided rather than impaired by the nearby church bells, I had a brief walk around Hawarden before breakfast. As a resident of North Inner City Dublin, seeing such a tidy village was a change – where was all the litter? The bus stop was not only covered, but seemed to be built from stone reclaimed from the nearby ruined castle wall, and the post office sold local baked goods and honey. I wandered up to Hawarden Old Castle itself (or rather, what’s left of it), to take in a view from a hill (sorry/not sorry), encountering only dogs and their humans – the promised sheep were nowhere to be seen. The Glynne Arms was beckoning to me, and I made a mental note to try to visit it later.

Back at Gladstone’s Library, I had lovely chats with other participants over breakfast, and then we were off to the themed sessions on MR James and women, and another looking into the role of spirituality in his works. Questions and discussion were welcomed – there was no sense of gatekeeping or pretension, with an entirely collegial mood throughout. After lunch, there was a break, and I took the opportunity to pop in to St Deiniol’s, which was a real hidden gem. As one of those confirmed unbelievers who likes a bit of church architecture, I was in my element. The medieval church had a Victorian restoration, but it was its rebuilding after an arson attack in 1857 that gives much of its current appearance, with stained glass by Burne-Jones. For the MR James fans, the church is also notable as the place where EW Benson, Archbishop of Canterbury and father of EF and AC Benson, who were both friends of James, died. Obviously much more could be said about the talented and troubled Benson family – perhaps a session for next year?

And I did manage to nip to the pub, briefly – regulars know I never miss out on the chance to have anything on cask when I make it over to the UK. The Glynne Arms is a beautiful pub, with lots of light wood and cosy spaces. It may veer a bit to the ‘gastro’ side for some, but I found it warm and welcoming, with knowledgeable and friendly staff. The local ale was This Splendid Ale by Facer’s, but I especially enjoyed Border Bitter by Magic Dragon Brewing. The beers by the bottle at Gladstone’s Library, for the record, were Sunrise Pale Ale and Landmark Bitter, both from Hafod Brewing Company – the honesty bar was a wonderful feature.

Back at the Library, there were two pre-dinner sessions, a writing workshop and a reading session in the modern chapel – again, a soothing space that still felt welcoming to all. After another filling meal, it was time to head to the Reading Room for another fantastic Nunkie performance. This time, for a larger audience, Robert-as-James took us to Scandinavia, first with ‘Number 13,’ and then, ‘Count Magnus.’ I’ve always had an especially soft spot for Number 13, so was thrilled to see it live, as it were. And then, after the public were sent on their way, those in for the weekend gathered back together for more Jamesian discussion and drinks by the fireplace. All told, a thoroughly civilised way to spend an evening.

Another excellent night’s sleep and breakfast with new friends followed, but there was just time to fit in a real visit to the Reading Room before departing. It’s a gorgeous, two-level space, with soaring beams and little reading nooks throughout. The collection tends to the religious, political and historic, and it would be easy to spend several days simply relaxing here with some of the books. I did chuckle a bit at the very small group of books about Gladstone’s rival, Benjamin Disraeli, on one of the shelves.

The trip home to Dublin was, as mentioned, once again delayed, but with a bit more advance notice, I spent more time in Chester, rather than in the rather less salubrious environs of Holyhead, before finally getting home – and there wasn’t even a voucher for a free tea this time!

But travel delays notwithstanding, it was a wonderful weekend, and I hope there is, indeed, an even more expanded event next year. In future, I’d aim to get in earlier to spend more time around the Hawarden Estate (and, most likely, specifically the Glynne Arms) before diving in to the Reading Room. The staff at Gladstone’s Library cannot be praised highly enough; they managed to bring a deft command to each aspect of the weekend’s activities, whether that was moderating a panel, explaining the collections, managing the overall time and even making sure late arrivals got fed. It’s a rare mix of skills and experience to be equally good at the collection management and (in this case) very public-facing parts of this job – well done to all.

And did you know you have a few months left to Befriend a Book?

Newcastle: The Great North Run, and Some Great Little Pubs

September 13, 2024 by Lisa Grimm

It had been a while since my last half-marathon, the Great Limerick Run in 2022, so I set a goal this year of signing up for a ‘big’ half and actually training properly. This was largely inspired by how incredibly painful I found the last bit of the race in Limerick, although it remains my PB for the distance. As I’d never been to Newcastle, but had heard that the Great North Run was well worth doing, I duly put my name in the ballot and ended up getting in – so, I was committed to some proper structured training.

I had a ‘good’ Frank Duffy 10 Miler here in the Phoenix Park a few weeks ago, both in terms of time and not feeling horrendous after (I found it very rough going in 2002), so I flew to Newcastle very much looking forward to the big run. I was also keen to explore some museums and, of course, pubs, and got some excellent recommendations from both BlueSky and Threads. Beer Twitter may be dead, but it has been reborn in multiple places, so while it takes a bit more doing than it did before to find everyone, we’re getting there again.

I was immediately impressed by Newcastle’s airport, which we’ll return to later, and by their TRAM NETWORK. It was simple and affordable to get into town from said airport via the Metro, and hopefully, some day, we can have something similar here in Dublin, like essentially every other sizable city with an airport…but I digress. After a post-arrival brunch, I made my way to the much-recommended Free Trade Inn for a few cask halves, and was thoroughly impressed by the spot. There were lovely people (hello, Tom!), a great variety of cask and keg local beer choices and a relaxed atmosphere; just my kind of pub. I then stopped in at nearby Full Circle Brewing, in what might best be described as the light-industrial-cool-brewery part of town, and had another warm welcome and some very pleasant tasters.

After visiting the Lit & Phil (a recommendation from Fabulous Folklore with Icy Sedgwick, though let’s be real, I am always visiting libraries) and doing some book shopping – really, the only thing I need to mark Newcastle down for is the small number of bookshops, though the selections at the Waterstones and Blackwells were both excellent – and dinner, I did another short pub crawl, stopping in at The Mean-eyed Cat and The Town Mouse. Once again, both spots had an interesting selection of cask and keg, but given my cask nerdery (and running plans), I stayed with the lower-key cask halves; well, I did have one pint at the end of the evening, which for me was at around 6 pm, as I was back in my hotel watching Murder, She Wrote by 6.30 pm. ROCK AND ROLL!

I kicked off my Saturday with a Parkrun at Leazes Park, where you could just make out St James’s Park in the fog, and then spent the rest of the day collecting my race number (they don’t post them if you live outside the UK), having tea, then wandering around museums, breweries and pubs. The Great North Museum: Hancock was well worth a visit, especially since I didn’t have time to head out to some of the bigger Roman sites in the area, and I stopped in at Wylam’s impressive Palace of Arts location for a swift half, too. I then prioritized pizza and getting to Donzoko Brewing’s new taproom, and am glad I did so. It’s a fantastic space, and the lagers were uniformly excellent. I managed to get my first, and, so far, only festbier of the year, and thoroughly enjoyed everything. After a bit more sightseeing and dinner (another, not-as-good pizza and the only bad cask beer I ended up abandoning, at a crowded pub that shall remain nameless), I had a last half of cask bitter, this time from Brew York, at Beer Street, a bottle shop and micropub housed in a railway arch. While pizza and The Right Amount of Beer the night before a race always serves me well, it was important to be mindful of the ‘right amount,’ and so, it was once again an early night.

Race day arrived, and while the weather had been really quite good for the north of England in September up until this point, the rain only held off until just before my wave was underway. By the time we reached the Tyne Bridge, the rain was heavy, as were my sodden shoes. But the support from what seemed to be the whole of Newcastle was outstanding; there was no point in the race, even though much of it is along rather featureless motorways, that lacked a cheering crowd, even in the heaviest downpours. By the time I got to the 19th or 20th kilometre, it had let up a bit, but it was still hard to see the sea by the time we reached it – I’m sure it was there!

Once I crossed the finish line in South Shields (still under 2 hours, despite the 60,000 strong field of runners and intensely wet, heavy going at times), it was a very straightforward exercise to get my medal, t-shirt and goody bag (with a very welcome foil blanket). Although there was a well-organised series of booths and activities after the finish line, I made a beeline to the buses back into Newcastle. Once again, this seemed well-planned and well-executed; I was back in my hotel room and finally able to stretch and warm up in a very long shower within the hour.

After a rest (and a lot of herbal tea from Bird & Blend), I devoured a burger from Meat:stack and went out (obviously, wearing my medal) for my celebratory pints. I started at The Wobbly Duck and once again found a great selection of cask and keg offerings, as well as wonderful staff and clientele – a properly great little pub I would absolutely visit again.

Finally, I flew home to Dublin on the Monday morning, and I have to sing the praises of the Newcastle airport – it is easily the nicest airport I have ever been to. I’ve already mentioned the ease of getting to and from the airport via the Metro, but security is a breeze (you get to leave everything in your bag), the staff are actually friendly and I had the best food I’ve ever had in an airport. Not only was it on par with brunches I’ve gone out for on purpose, but there was good tea and a nice selection of local beer (including Wylam and Full Circle), though I gave that a miss at that hour of the morning.

All told, I’m glad I’ve got a Great North Run in the books, and I’m happy to report there’s a very interesting beer scene in Newcastle; I think on a future visit I’d aim to include a side trip to Durham and to hit up more archaeological sites, but in any event, the universal friendliness and fantastic airport make a return visit tempting.

But I’m also open to hearing opinions on what half-marathon to aim for next year – bonus points for a flat course, great local bookshops, interesting beer and museums aplenty. Share your ideas!

Bristol, Bath, Books & Beer

August 15, 2024 by Lisa Grimm

We recently had the opportunity to take a child-free long weekend, and our destination criteria were simple: a short, direct flight from Dublin, reasonably affordable hotels and access to excellent bookshops; good beer was a bonus. Having previously missed the chance to visit Persephone Books for their anniversary festival earlier in the year, Bath was bubbling up to the top of our list, but we had no real desire to stay there (or, more to the point, pay to stay there) at the height of tourist season.

Hotel specials showed good value in Bristol, and given the short train ride to Bath – plus affordable flights from Dublin – that became our chosen destination. We got some excellent beer advice from Ray and Jess of Boak and Bailey fame – more on that later – and had a long list of Bath bookshops pre-selected, so off we went. Our early-morning flight was only very slightly delayed, so we had most of the day to wander around Bristol. I had last visited in 2001 to see The Divine Comedy (Regeneration tour, if you’re keeping track), but saw little on that trip; indeed, I last ‘saw’ the usual sights of (pre-Banksy) Bristol in the early 1990s…which I hazily recall as seeing the Clifton Suspension Bridge after a day trip to Wookey Hole Caves, but not much else stuck in the mind.

Having done most of the touristy things in Bath on relatively recent trips, we planned to make that part of the trip purely a book-shopping affair – but with a beery side quest we’ll return to shortly. And so, back to that first day in Bristol – we found the bus from the airport quite handy, dropped off our bags and began hitting the shops – much tea was required. We managed a few Bristol bookshops, got the lay of the land and stopped in to Left Handed Giant for lunch; I was thrilled to get my whenever-in-England cask dark mild there. I was also pleased about the prominence of their run club in the brewpub decor – I do miss having an active brewery-powered run club. After a quick stops at Little Martha Brewing and The King’s Head (and a rest), we met up with Jess and Ray in The Swan with Two Necks; it’s always a delight to meet someone from Former Beer Twitter IRL, especially after so many years of following their work. We had a lovely evening, but still got back to the hotel at a reasonable time – this was a child-free trip, after all, so actually getting enough sleep was achievable.

We (OK, I) began Day 2 with a bit of Parkrun tourism, getting a letter ‘E’ with Eastville. Once tidied up, we were off to Bath, and, possibly for the first time since Covid, I had a UK train journey that was reasonably priced and ran on time. True, it was crowded, but given that it was a summer weekend, this was not unexpected. We made one exception to the ‘avoiding touristy things’ remit by getting more tea at The Bath Bun, enjoying the sun on Abbey Green. Then, finally, it was all about books (well, and running shops). We started at Topping & Co, which was beautifully laid-out. Persephone Books was something of a pilgrimage spot (feel free to reference Dorothy Richardson if you like) – it used to be a regular place I would visit in London (very handy for The Lamb on Lamb’s Conduit Street), but had not had a chance prior to this to visit their new home in Bath. It did not disappoint. Mr B’s Emporium was also wonderful.

And then, the side quest!

We were thrilled to have Dr James Wright on the Beer Ladies Podcast this season to talk about his recent book, Historic Building Mythbusting, and in the course of chatting about pubs with spurious claims to antiquity, he mentioned The George Inn in Norton St Philip as one with a much better-documented case. James also pointed out that it was a short journey from Bath, and, indeed, the bus journey was easily achieved. We had a bit of time to explore The George, and also took in its sister pub, the Fleur de Lys, just across the street, before heading back to The George for dinner. I’ve long had a soft spot for Butcombe pubs, and find their cask bitter rather wonderful, so while there may not be anything ‘unusual,’ everything we did have was excellent, and the atmosphere was fantastic. It also turned out to be much easier and faster to get back to Bristol than expected(!), so we had time to stop in at Lost and Grounded, and enjoyed both their pleasant lagers and, given the heat, a radler. Going from a medieval inn to a modern taproom was quite a contrast, but it was a fun way to end the evening.

We then had a full day of ‘doing’ Bristol (after a training run to the Clifton Suspension Bridge – I am not used to running up hills any more) – we went to the impressive M Shed, where Bristol’s ancient and recent history, warts and all, was very well-presented and thoroughly contextualized. Rather than ignoring or glossing over things, there was a real clarity to the exhibits and a willingness to engage with the more difficult aspects of the city’s history, providing a much fuller picture. There was also a small STEAM TRAIN we got to take from M Shed to the SS Great Britain. I am a weirdo who has long had a fascination with Isamabard Kingdom Brunel’s work on the trouble-laden SS Great Eastern – I blame all the ‘haunted Britain’ books I had as a child – and so getting to see the SS Great Britain and the attached museum with a GIANT BRUNEL was, frankly, pretty great. We had some lovely cheese and a mini pub crawl – first, to Small Bar, a delightful and welcoming craft beer pub that I wish we’d had more time to visit, and then to Wiper & True, so we ticked off another brewery taproom.

The Bristol tourism continued the following day, with visits to both the Red Lodge and Georgian House Museums – and well-fuelled by Bird & Blend Tea. We saw a few Banksy pieces on our wanders, naturally, and visited what might have been my favourite pub: The Lime Kiln. On paper, there’s nothing that screams ‘outstanding pub’ – it’s a relatively unremarkable, early-20th century exterior, but inside, it’s cask-ale nerd heaven. The mural on the main wall features the pub cat, there was an excellent range of well-kept local beers and, at least on our visit, some of the most Relevant-to-my-Interests esoteric-edged prog rock playing quietly in the background. I LOVED EVERYTHING ABOUT IT.

Finally, before heading home, we hit one of the more tourist-friendly pubs in The Llandoger Trow, where, to my surprise, they had Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous on tap – a beautiful beer in a well-preserved setting, and a perfect way to end a short break.

In short (not that this has been short), a successful short break!

Manchester: Literary Locations, Libraries and (Some) Libations

June 20, 2024 by Lisa Grimm

Despite a not-fun health wobble, we managed a quick weekend trip to Manchester recently, for music and literary purposes. As ever when traveling, I have to take a Professional Interest in not just all the unique local bookshops, but in any unusual or historic libraries. And although I spent a lot of time in and around Manchester in the 1990s, nearly everything looks so vastly different now that it felt like visiting a new place. Indeed, apart from the big Waterstones and Affleck’s Palace, so much seemed either completely unfamiliar or strangely uncanny…there was a hint of a memory, but the general appearance in many places around town was (mostly) so different that it felt like a false one.

I won’t dwell too much on the fact that Manchester has a Uniqlo (attached to the Arndale Centre, no less! Only some of the tiling that made it look like a toilet from the 1960s remains!) while we here in Dublin, a European capital, still lack one; while most of what I look for anywhere is a wealth of independent shops, pubs and restaurants, I do go through a lot of Uniqlo basics and rain gear, so I feel the need to stop in whenever I spot one elsewhere. New rain jacket acquired, we enjoyed browsing and tea-drinking at the delightful House of Books and Friends and at Social Refuge, the café inside Queer Lit. But while book-buying was a key part of the agenda (I finally picked up Ghosts of the British Museum), looking at libraries was the main focus.

And again, despite the considerable time I’ve spent around the area, I’d never made it to Chetham’s Library. It’s all too easy to think of Manchester as springing into existence largely fully-formed during the Industrial Revolution, Roman foundations notwithstanding, as there simply isn’t much (at first glance) to see of medieval Manchester, and finally getting around to taking the tour of the c.1420s building went a long way to rectifying that. The library is gorgeous – not dissimilar in some ways to Marsh’s Library here – and it’s a fascinating tour. I especially enjoyed the notes showing what previous Librarians had got up to – some were bad ‘uns!

We also took in the John Rylands Library, and it was heartening to see that there was a queue to get in; more people wanting to do library tourism can only be a good thing, if managed properly. In addition to the beautiful building and core collections, there was an excellent exhibit called ‘We Have Always Been Here,’ exploring marginalised communities and how library and archival collections are never neutral…not news to those of us who have worked in them, but probably something that the broader public needs a lot more education to really understand. There’s to be considerable renovation in the near future, so it’s well worth checking out now to compare and contrast down the line.

While we didn’t get to try as much local beer as planned, thanks to the whole surprise illness thing, I did enjoy a couple of cask bitter and pale ale halves here and there, and a mix of good and less-good non-alcoholic options – the AF version of Track’s Sonoma was very good indeed, and the taproom was lovely. Also lovely was the much-recommended Marble Arch Inn; a beautiful, calm pub ideal for a chill afternoon of cheese boards and those lower-key (and much appreciated) cask bitters.

There was also a musical element to this trip, so there is at least one variable that has proven as constant in most of my past trips to Manchester. In this instance, however, it was to see Wesley Stace, the Philadelphia-based Englishman many of you may have known as John Wesley Harding. This was his first UK tour in many years, and without an Irish date or two, Manchester was our closest option. He put on a great gig in a tiny pub – I hope a good time was had by all, we certainly enjoyed seeing him after such a long gap since our semi-regular shows during our Philly days. We did feel that we were not cool enough to be out and about in the Northern Quarter after the show, though…the whole area seemed to be in good hands with the crowds of hip Young People, so we left them to it.

We also had not realized when we booked that it was the same weekend as the Great Manchester Run, and while I was in no shape to be running a 10K (well, I did do one a week later, and only mildly crashed again after), much less a half marathon, it seemed like such a great time to be in town – oddly, hotel prices didn’t seem to have been pushed up for the occasion – that I’ve penciled it in to my race calendar for next year.

Now that I’m mostly recovered, it’s back to training for the Great North Run in Newcastle later this year…finally, an entirely new-to-me city to explore!

A Eurovision Pilgrimage, with Beer Side-quests

June 4, 2024 by Lisa Grimm

At long last, a quick summary of a Eurovision-themed trip to Malmö and Copenhagen, complete with beer side quests – this was rather delayed by life/an unexpected hospital visit/work/some fun travel, but finally, it’s ready for your perusal. While I’ve spent a fair amount of time in Denmark in the past, I’d never had the chance to cross the Øresund Bridge to Sweden, so for a transit nerd like me, this was an exciting opportunity. I set off with my fellow Beer Lady/Eurovision nerd Katie on an early-morning flight from Dublin – we skipped the airport pints in favour of tea – and began the adventure.

The trip from Copenhagen airport via train was speedy and inexpensive; the special transit pass covering all travel in and around Malmö during the Eurovision period was most welcome, and while my particular part of Dublin is relatively well-served by buses, it’s nothing like the array of trains, trams and buses available in Copenhagen and Malmö, nor do we have the same wide, clean footpaths and bicycle lanes; perhaps we will, some day. In any event, the trip was a perfect excuse to explore the beery options on offer in the region, and we began with an initial visit to Malmö Brewing Company, located in an old brewery building, appropriately enough. These days, they brew a wide array of the usual hazy IPAs and fruited sours you find in most craft brewery taprooms, but they also have a few more meads, ciders and cocktails than you tend to find in Ireland or the UK. They also serve a BBQ menu – this seems to be ‘a thing’ in Scandinavia at the moment, though I confess I’ve never been a particular fan of BBQ in general – but others were happy enough with the food offering. That said, I did rather enjoy their Tiny IPA – hardly tiny, really, at 5% ABV, but quite pleasant.

We wandered back to Copenhagen to do the Carlsberg tour; while I had previously visited some years ago, it was closed on my last work visit (and had been under renovation for some time), so it was fascinating to go back. I was thrilled to see the horses again, and they have thoroughly amped up the ‘brand experience’ end of things at the Home of Carlsberg – lots of interactive activities that you can save via your wristband, which I geeked out about from a professional perspective, and a surprisingly coherent narrative about Père et Fils Jacobsen, complete with lots of ACTING, and the history of the Carlsberg breweries. We followed up the tour with a tasting in the cellars, which have been beautifully tidied up, and while most of the offerings were fairly pedestrian, the Jacobsen Yakima IPA is always a nice choice, and the Old Carlsberg Porter was lovely. There’s a lot to see and do at Carlsberg, and it’s well worth a visit, even to the most anti-big-brewery person out there – even if just for the horses and the bottle and can collection.

We also managed to find some excellent cask ale at The Bishop’s Arms – one of a chain of English-style pubs across Sweden, with two locations in Malmö. For once, the food was not BBQ, but more standard pub grub, with an excellent burger and chips. And while I had a little taster of a local Maibock – so local it was brewed in the cellars under the pub – it was the English cask bitters I was going for – an excellent and well-kept selection from Marble (which I’ve had even more recently – another story to come), Red Willow and Rudgate. 10/10 no notes.

In the midst of the swirl and glitter of Eurovision, we took a bit of time out to head back into Copenhagen for the Mikkeller Beer Fest, because there’s nothing better for your overall well-being than going to a beer festival at 10 am in a week when you’ve barely been sleeping, but hey ho, needs must. Perhaps ironically, I didn’t end up having that much beer…the long queues were all for what I can only describe as Barrel-aged Nonsense or Pastry Stout Silliness, so, with the exceptions of tasters of a few white whales (the Focal Banger from The Alchemist was very nice, just not earth-shattering), I largely stuck to small pours of some really rather pleasant pale ales and low-key dark lagers, with a lot of water – and no waiting! By far, my favourite beers of the festival were Pedes pale ale from Ebeltoft Gårdbryggeri – a Danish brewery I’ve enjoyed before when visiting Odense – and Toska Bryggj, a Scottish ale from OY Brewing in the Faroe Islands. We also stopped in just around the corner from the festival site at WarPigs for (more) BBQ and a surprisingly straightforward bitter called Hogshead.

Upon our return to Malmö, we also discovered Hyllie Bryggeri, and this was much more to my taste than some of the more hipster-fied options elsewhere: yes, an industrial taproom with some local art flourishes, but a warm welcome and some excellent beers all around. The Hapi Pils, described as a Pacific lager, was absolutely top-notch: crisp and grainy, but clean, and with some flavourful New Zealand hops – a proper banger, and something I would have as a regular go-to, were it generally available to me. All in all, a highly-recommended spot to sit and relax.

In summary, a trip to Eurovision is exhausting – you can see I’ve barely included anything around the shows themselves (though HUZZAH to Bambie Thug for absolutely SLAYING for Ireland), nor the many, many Irish fan meetups we attended in and around the multiple Irish pubs on offer in Malmö, but they were all top class, and we met so many wonderful people on the trip – we Eurovision fans were easy to spot at the beer festival, of course, so it was simple to Find Our People in the crowd. It would be an absolute delight to do it again, ideally in a year with a bit less controversy, though Switzerland is not going to be cheap, nor will their beer selection be as varied, and yet…well, we’ll see what happens next year!