DUBLIN’S PURE
As the Irish capital gears up for the St Patrick’s Day fun,
MALTA: Snap up seven nights on room-only at the four-star Sunny Coast Resort & Spa in Qawra for £156. You’ll fly from Southend on March 18. Hit travelrepublic.co.uk or ring 020 8974 7200. COSTA DEL SOL: Enjoy Benalmadena on a week’s self-catering holiday at the four-star Sunset Beach Club Hotel for £260. Go from Glasgow on February 24. You can book online at sunshine.co.uk. CHESTER: Enjoy a Valentine’s Day package for £125 per room (two sharing) at the four-star Crabwall Manor Hotel & Spa. Includes candlelit dinner and breakfast. See crabwallmanorhotelandspa.com. TENERIFE: Fly out from Exeter on February 21 for one week B&B at the three-star Globales Acuario Hotel in Puerto de la Cruz for £252. Go to onthebeach.co.uk.
“YOU’VE got the moustache,” I’m being told in that fine Irish accent. “Welcome to Dublin.”
This is my first Guinness tash. And it’s true – the black stout doesn’t taste half as good without one.
According to experts, a pint must never be sipped. It needs to be a blend of the creamy head with the dark beer.
For my next lesson, I am encouraged to try – in one slug – to drink all the way down to the harp emblem on the glass.
I think the guide is pulling my leg. I look into his green eyes, give it a go and cover my nose in foam.
I’m on a tour of the Guinness Storehouse in the Irish capital to mark St Patrick’s Day. Having stood for almost 260 years, you’d think the factory would be covered in stains and smell like a brewery. It doesn’t.
Instead it has a plush entrance where the walls are black, it appears to be filled with mysterious secrets and learning how to pour and drink is all part of the experience. Once my eyes adjust to the light, I can see that in the portrait of Arthur Guinness, he has that sprightly look in his eyes.
And the taste of his Guinness hasn’t changed over time, either. We drink the same stout recipe this saint-like creator brewed in 1759.
The advertising floor is filled with the company’s iconic ads including the surfer and horses, which was voted the best telly advert of all time by Channel 4.
And just when I think I know all there is to know about Ireland’s favourite brew, there is a twist. Despite its famous black and white branding, Guinness is red. As it is my first time in Ireland, I make my way to the seventh-floor Gravity Bar with top views of the city and tell everyone. I then sit down to hold my glass up to the light. It is true. It’s ruby red.
Much later, the 10-centuries-old city is illuminated in emerald green for the celebrations ahead.
“Going green,” which is on March 16 this year, happens around the world. Landmarks such as the London Eye, Niagara Falls, the Great Wall of China and the Colosseum in Rome join in the fun. Earlier in the day I had poked around the Little Museum of Dublin, which includes a unique display of gold Monster Munch crisps and a room dedicated to the band U2.
I’d also taken a DoDublin hopon-hop-off bus tour where the driver named all the famous Dubliners including Sinead O’Connor and Mrs Brown’s Boys comedian Brendan O’Carroll.
I stay overnight at Buswells Hotel, a historic building in the Georgian centre. Dating back to the 1800s, the hotel is one of the oldest in the city and popular with politicians and celebrities.
Rooms boast gorgeous duvets,