"Harp" lager Brewery in Dundalk to close.

10green bottles

Diageo has announced it is to invest €153m in a "brewing centre of excellence" at the Guinness brewery at St James's Gate in Dublin.
However its breweries in Kilkenny and Dundalk, which employ around 100 workers, will close next year.
The company announced its plans to centralise operations in Dublin in 2008 - today it confirmed that the Louth facility would close in July 2013 and the Kilkenny brewery in December 2013.
Today's announcement follows a review of how Diageo "can best ensure the long term sustainability" of its brewing operations in Ireland.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/0112/diageo.html


The smell of the hops brewing and the "lovely" smell flowing over the Dundalk area will be forever a memory come July 2013.


Thoughts/Memories.-

MugMugs

Was passing it earlier and thinking how much I'd miss the smell. Wonder what they'll do with it

Dunny

End of an era.

Always enjoyed the hops smell going under the china bridge..:(

Nesta99

MugMugs wrote: »

Was passing it earlier and thinking how much I'd miss the smell. Wonder what they'll do with it

Apartments no doubt! Id love to see a micro brewery of some sort open up in it, though Diageo wouldnt let that happen:( Imagine McArdles Ale and Harp lager being brewed independently on Gallows Hill.....

cournioni

Damn, and I was just thinking about how much I loved that smell the other day. Sad to see it go.

MugMugs

Can't imagine Apartments in there. Not for a long time yet. Would be a shame too see it turned into anything else. Sure Cooley Distilleries are looking for more room. There's a nice central spot for them

Marcusm

Was that not originally the Macardle Moore brewery, I ask only as that would have a lot more heritage than "Harp".

windingo

A sad and worrying time for the workers im sure, no loss to me though, I hated the stuff.

MugMugs

Marcusm wrote: »

Was that not originally the Macardle Moore brewery, I ask only as that would have a lot more heritage than "Harp".

Technically its the great Northern Brewery. Assume McCardle Moore was pre 1950?

Nesta99

No Macardles was on the Ardee Rd at Cambrickville. Much more heritage! not that that mattered to Diageo. Windigo other brews are produced by the GNB for example Carlsberg, Sapparo among others. Since 1990 Harp 'celebration brew' became very similar in recipie to Carlsberg. I have seen publicans run out of Carlsberg and stick on a Harp keg - not one noticed! Harp got a rep for being full of chemicals and gave a roaring hangover hence the change to the brew. The Nordies couldnt get enough of it and you wouldnt see it on sale south of Kildare..odd.

MugMugs

Is that brewery demolished nesta?

Nesta99

Nope it is a small retail type place although i'm sure some of it is gone. Various shop units/businesses are in parts of the old buildings. If you look accross the road from the garage on the Ardee Rd you can see the old Macardle house - i'm sure some of it has preservation orders.

If interested pop in to the County Museum, a small exhibition opened recently on Macardle Moore, free entry and as a beside the museum building used to be a Distillery hence Distillery Lane beside it.

MugMugs

Cheers for that

southlouth type

Thats an awful shame . More jobs lost ...

ShiverinEskimo

I live on the Ardee Road myself beside Macardles. Mam worked in Harp until shortly after I was born too, my Uncle retired from it a few years back. Huge part of my life just having it there. I also walk my dog up around the fields behind Macardles.

Dundalk had a fine tradition of brewing and it'll be a real shame to see it finally leave.

Nesta99

southlouth type wrote: »

Thats an awful shame . More jobs lost ...

55 jobs SL. But not is all lost Am liking Trap and the boys more and more ....

10green bottles

The giant grain silos en route to the brewery(pic courtesy of Paul Kavanagh)

Dunny

That's a fantastic pic.

ShiverinEskimo

I remember all the power and phone lines over the approach roads having to be taken down when they were bringing in silos. All of us the Friary were glued to the fence bars to watch like hungry prisoners.

MugMugs

Where's that pic shot ?

Dunny

Around by the Garda Barracks/Friary Church

MugMugs

Ah I see it now. That's a print the pic and stick up in the toilet job.

Nesta99

Grain Silos? I thought they were storage vats for the beer lol - ah sure twas a nice thought:o

john reilly

carlsberg is not a patch on harp. in fairnes it was probably the labour costs that were the last straw.

10green bottles

...'And Sally O'Brien and the way she might look at you'

MugMugs

john reilly wrote: »

carlsberg is not a patch on harp. in fairnes it was probably the labour costs that were the last straw.

What? It's piss. Utter piss. Proud as hell it does so well abroad but I wouldn't feed it to my worst enemy.

ShiverinEskimo

Carlsberg is the worst of the worst. I wouldn't drink Harp either, but I'd rather it to that ditch water Carlsberg any day.

10green bottles

In the Beer v Beer stakes as stated in the two posts above,this is my opinion:

I'm a fecker LOL.I will drink anything and everything and have(in 22 years a-beering)never settled on 'THEE' one beer.
I'm not fussy,call me cantankerous and say i have no taste buds if you want, but as long as there is some alcohol in the jug and there is a foamy head on the top then i think you will find that i am grand with whatever slosh you give me.:D

ShiverinEskimo

Don't get me wrong - any port in a storm and all that. But where there's a choice of lagers and it's limited to Carslberg, Bud, Coors and Harp it'd have to be Harp.

Under ideal circumstances it's Guinness or german/czech pilsner for me.

DK man

Anyone know when the gates finally close? I think it might be this week.

Shame on those behind the closure - highly efficient and profitable brewery but not good enough for the greedy men in suits who always want more

Good look to all the workers

minzabud

30th of September, I served my apprenticeship there, sad to see the place go.