Best pint of Guinness

Walter_Sobcek · 12-09-2003 11:17am #1

Alrighty, probably done before but things change....

In Dublin city centre some of the nicest, most consistant pints I've had lately were in

1. Kehoes off Grafton street (near Abrakebabra - handy)

2. Mulligans of Poolbeg street.

Contributions please and maybe we can get a good list going

Dr. Loon · 12-09-2003 11:24am

Haven't been in a while bu The Flowing Tide on Abbey Street does a great pint.
The Lord Edward up at Christ Church.

aodh_rua · 12-09-2003 11:34am

Originally posted by Walter_Sobcek
Alrighty, probably done before but things change....

In Dublin city centre some of the nicest, most consistant pints I've had lately were in

1. Kehoes off Grafton street (near Abrakebabra - handy)

2. Mulligans of Poolbeg street.

Contributions please and maybe we can get a good list going

Can't argue with your taste!

Heresy · 12-09-2003 11:36am

Lads, I'd have to say the best pint of Guinness in Dublin is in 'The Grave Diggers' there in Glasnevin.
In town it's difficult to find many places. I'd go along with the Flowing Tide and maybe add O Donoghues.

Sleipnir · 12-09-2003 11:38am

The quality of Guinness on Mulligan's has dropped significantly IMO.
They used to be one of the best but I think that since it became famous on "Bachelor's Walk" that too many people go there and there's no time for the barmen to pull a really good pint.

Have to agree On Keogh's, certainly one of the best.
Also the Palace Bar.
The Gravedigger.
The Auld Dub's aren't bad.
Hartigan's used to have great pints but again, it's dropped off.

dod · 12-09-2003 11:41am

Will ye stop talking about the Gravediggers so that we can keep the bloody place to ourselves. Don't want the place overrun now, do we?

Sleipnir · 12-09-2003 11:43am

Originally posted by dod
Will ye stop talking about the Gravediggers so that we can keep the bloody place to ourselves. Don't want the place overrun now, do we?

there ain't a Guinness drinker in Dublin who doesn't know the Gravedigger.

Heresy · 12-09-2003 11:50am

if I was to say where the best pint of guinness in Ireland can be found I wouldn't be talking about Dublin. Maybe 15 years ago or more but not now. Things have gotten too hussle bussle over there and ya get barmen from outer mongolia firing pints of porter at ya that only took 5 seconds to make.
Ye should come over to galway, educate your palate.

fisty · 12-09-2003 11:57am

i agree.
I can't stand the way all the bar staff in most bars in dublin are chinese or southafrican or ozzie now.
They don't know how to pull a decent pint of the black stuff so you end up with a shoite pint.

O2Suck · 12-09-2003 12:00pm

The Hut - Phibsboro does a nice pint AS DOES cLANCYS ACROSS THE ROAD FROM IT.Hairy lemon can pull a good ojne now and again. Agree Keoghs are consistently good

Imposter · 12-09-2003 12:08pm

A little off-topic but what exactly is the science behind pulling a pint?

I used to work in bars and used to hear the "Oh you can't pull a pint" cräp but *** I think it's all about how clean/dirty/used the lines are that makes the difference. But I'm sure someone has a decent explaination on why certain people can't pull pints!

Walter_Sobcek · 12-09-2003 12:25pm

Not really sure but an uncle of mine who owns a pub says it is solely down to how often the pipes are cleaned.

Gravediggers is a fantastic pint

also now that I think of it Gleesons in Booterstown

Washout · 12-09-2003 12:27pm

Ive been going to the Bank lately on Dame street and jesus do they pull a fan bloodytastic pint of guinness in there...they even ahve murphys on tap...

i asked the barman in there if ordered a pint of murphys would he guarantee it cold...he said yes and emptied the pipe and proceeded to pull my just as nice a pint of murphys as one would get in Cork.

but the Guinness in there is superb

Samba · 12-09-2003 12:29pm

Can't put a name to the place but I remember the guinness being sublime!

It's opposite St. James's Hospital.

scojones · 12-09-2003 12:37pm

not just how often the pipes are cleaned but how long they are. If the pipes are 50ft from keg to tap then there is (guess) about a half pint sitting in the lines at all times, not in the keg or in your glass, going warm and turning to piss. The factors are:
1) How often pipes are cleaned.
2) How long the pipes are (shorter the better).
3) How often the pint is pulled from that keg
4) The skill of the barperson.
5) The glass must be room temp / lower when being used. If a pint is poured into a warm glass taken from the dishwasher it ruins it!

Sarky · 12-09-2003 12:38pm

The further south in Ireland one goes, the better the Guinness. Odd, but true so far.

Imposter · 12-09-2003 12:41pm

Originally posted by sjones
4) The skill of the barperson.

Please explain this one. The others I agree with but this was what I meant by my question.

Thanx 4 The Fish · 12-09-2003 12:46pm

There are a few things that I was taught back in the day.

Angle of the glass.
Amount poured in the first pull.
Time to settle.
How ya pour in the fill up, although here in C'bar ya can buy a medjum (medium but spoken differently) which means just serving up after the first pour.

Imposter · 12-09-2003 1:14pm

Originally posted by Thanx 4 The Fish
There are a few things that I was taught back in the day.

Angle of the glass.
Amount poured in the first pull.
Time to settle.
How ya pour in the fill up, although here in C'bar ya can buy a medjum (medium but spoken differently) which means just serving up after the first pour.

As was I, but what makes me doing that any different from a guy who pours a better(or worse) pint than me. After all we both pull approx the same amount of the same (type of) liquid goes in at approx the same angle. I/They wait approx the same amount of time and then follow the same procedure for topping up. Now how is it than one person still (in the eyes of the real experts) pulls a better pint.

Thanx 4 The Fish · 12-09-2003 2:13pm

Alot of it is down to what one person is used to over another, I know that in Johnny Mc Hales here in C'bar, who won the best pint in Ireland cupla blian o shin, they are pretty unorthodox apparently, although I can hardly tell the difference. When it comes down to it it's all about someones preference and if they do not like what you are at or ya do it differently than they are used to, then they will call ya up on it.

Walter_Sobcek · 12-09-2003 3:41pm

Had a cheeky lunchtime pint in Donahy and Nesbitts (Baggott street)
Which was fantastic. Think it has to do with how much time the barman has to work on it.

Thanx 4 The Fish · 12-09-2003 3:51pm

Am off to Johnny Mc Hales soon, they serve chicken wings around 7ish to anybody who is there, nice little incentive to stay till then and I will have me dinner too.

Roll on 4 o clock

aodh_rua · 12-09-2003 3:57pm

On the whole science of pint-pulling - the distance from the kegs does play a huge part - just think of places with many floors and how things deteriorate as you go higher. On that note - the best pint I ever had was in a pokey place back home in Kildare with no working women's toilets (you know the kind of place!) Well they kept the kegs literally uder the bar. The pints were amazing - smooth and creamy!

colm_c · 12-09-2003 11:20pm

I used to work for Guinness themselves a few years ago and according to their training course, to get the best pint of Guinness possible, you need to meet the following criteria

1. Constant flow on the Guinness Tap i.e. the guinness should not be sitting in the lines for more than 30 seconds.

2. the shorter the distance to the keg the better (but there will always be at least 1.5 pints in the line at any one time, because of the cooling system/machine)

3. The temperature of the glass in which the pint is being served i.e. room temp is good, but cooler is better.

4. The Glass must be bone dry, i.e. washed and dried

5. Presentation is everything, if the Guinness served looks the part, no spillage, no big head, and if served in a Guinness Glass.

That's as much as I can remember, maybe someone from Guinness can correct me if I'm wrong?

memphis · 14-09-2003 2:05pm

Originally posted by Sarky
The further south in Ireland one goes, the better the Guinness. Odd, but true so far.

I'm not much of a Guiness drinker, but I know a good pint when I have one. I gotta agree with Sarky on this one.

My sentiment exactly. I once went through a time when I drank nothing but Guiness, went to Croke Park to a GAA game then had a Guiness in some hotel nearby after, put me off the stuff for ages.

Have had Guiness is pubs all over Tipp and Waterford. They were good pints overall, so yes, I believe the further south ya go (rural areas particularly) the better the Guiness.

Memphis

gerire · 14-09-2003 10:00pm

Ive worked as a barman for a few years, 5, but have also worked in Guinness for a Summer. The pint in the storehouse was alright but not great.

Add onto the list
> The barmans want to pull a good pint
> Short lines, and if possible to get the lines to come from above the keg, I only know on 4 places where this is true and all serve good pints. Its really odd to find it though
>Clean Glass
>Cold Guinness

Nicest pint I had was in the Guinness corporate box in Croke Park, mmmmm

shano · 15-09-2003 2:08pm

Excellent pint of plain in the Cobblestone, Smithfield at €3.30 a pop! Brilliant music too.

firebird · 24-09-2003 6:37pm

Mahaffy's, corner of Lombard St, Westland Row, Pearse St... Only, there are two barmen usually, and only one of them pulls the pint properly... The older, skinnier guy

Walter_Sobcek · 26-09-2003 4:38pm

Cassidys on Camdon street.

A biyaach of a pint

choppers · 30-09-2003 2:22am

Best Pint:Nash's near on Patrick Street beside St. Patrick's Cathedral do a great pint at €3.30 a pint. Keg is only 5 feet below in cellar.

Worst Pint of guinness has to be in Boomerangs nightclub in Temple bar ready in 5 seconds, has no head, luke warm and tastes of piss honestly, me and my fellow comandoes nearly got sick, they bar manager looked disgusted when we told him that the pint was worse than slopps and could we change it for a beer.

Anto

Best pint of Guinness

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