Wine Talk by Art of the Table
March 12, 2011
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St. Patrick's Day is around the corner and we wanted to throw out a heads up on the Irish(ish) stuff we have available.
First off, not to bum you out, but St. Patrick's Day is not about drinking beer...it originated as a day of feast to celebrate the romanticized Saint. As we understand it,
St. Patrick was actually born Roman Britain to a wealthy family, was kidnapped by Irish raiders at the age of 16 and forced into slavery. He was able to flee, become a priest and later returned to Ireland to evangelize to the pagan Irish.
The only folklore that remains is the use of clover as it is said he used the clover to explain the Holy Trinity to the Irish. The color that represents St. Patrick isn't even green, it's blue!
All the history aside, we've got the good stuff to help you celebrate St. Patrick's Day the way you've always known it to be. |
Beer
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Short's Brewing Co. Uncle Steve's Irish Stout
So not a traditional Irish beer, but certainly delicious and it has a Leprechaun looking guy on the front...good enough for me! Seriously though, this is a great Irish Dry Stout styled beer. It pours a rich dark brown with great lacing. The aroma and flavor is of roasted malt, coffee, chocolate and a hint of bitter hops. Go on, support your local Michigan brewery on St. Patty's Day...Guinness gets more than enough business already.
Moylan's Dragoons Irish Dry Stout
A wonderful California made Irish Stout for this 'holiday'. Teeming with dark expressions of chocolate, roasted coffee and toasty malt biscuits, the taste doesn't deviate from the nose, and altogether a great beer with a remarkably memorable flavor profile.
A must try for stout lovers,
you couldn't dye this beer green if you had magic in you.
Wexford Irish Cream Ale
Widely considered the standard for Irish Cream Ale (though actually brewed by Morland Brewery of England). This traditional frothy beauty is medium light, unique and delicious. Buttery with hints of caramel on the nose, almost no hops are detected. The beer feels heavy on the palate at first, but it is rather light once the nitro wears off. This is the ultimate beer for traditional bangers and mash with steamed cabbage and carrots.
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Irish Whiskey
| | Redbreast Irish Whiskey
We carry both the 12 and 15 year old Redbreast, both distilled in pure pot stills and both are single barrel, unblended whiskies. The 15 year is also different in that it is non chill-filtered. The distinction with Redbreast is the mellow character full of flavor, but not in a robust manner. You can taste malt, hints of oak, a small reminder of orange rind
and delicate spice on the palate.
Truly, a wonderful whiskey that often gets overlooked.
$50.50 (12yr) / $84 (15yr)
Connemara This is unique from most Irish whiskey selections because it is a peated single malt. The result is still a mellow whiskey but with a smokey and peat flavor and a smooth, simple finish. Simple, but still complex. The flavor remains for a long time.
$60.90
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Mead(e)
| Mead is a fermented beverage basically made from honey and water. Other ingredients can be added, depending on the tradition of where it is produced.
Mead can be dry, semi dry or very sweet and widely ranges in alcohol, usually between 8-18%. We have a couple of selections that may be of interest to you this St. Patrick's Day.
Bunratty Meade ~ Ireland
Bunratty is made from white wine, honey and herbs. It is much darker in color than a traditional honey Mead, almost like a dark bourbon color. The flavor comes across semi-sweet with tones of lemon and crystallized honey. Certainly a delicious alternative to both beer and wine, an experience like no other.
B. Nektar Meadery ~ Michigan A very unique Mead made from honey from orange and other citrus trees. The flavor is sweet, and the mouthfeel is very large and syrup-like. Don't mistake it for a sugary, syrupy mess though. It is a high quality Mead with a unique citrus and oak flavor.
Amazing with spicy Asian cuisine.
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And not to forget...
| We have shamrock & clover cookie cutters, green sprinkles and other lovely things from Ireland to party with. Stop by for green goods!
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