In December, I’ll have about a 3 hour layover in Dublin airport in the afternoon. Guinness is NOT my beer of choice at any time in the USA. However, assuming everything goes smoothly, I should have time for a pint or two of beer at Dublin airport while waiting for my flight back to the USA.
Is Guinness really better when it is served fresh in Ireland? I am a beer lover, should I try a pint? Are there likely to be other interesting beers at an airport pub? Is Ireland similar to the UK where you can order a half pint?
I tried Guinness in Dublin, it tasted about the same but I do feel like the Smithwick’s was better in the Dublin area. If you like Ales at all this is another Guinness product and to my taste a better one. I found this fine Red Ale to be better there.
I do like ales, I rarely drink lagers when I’m in the UK unless that is all they have available. I’ve heard Aer Lingus is stingy on their drink service, so I may as well enjoy myself at Dublin airport assuming everything runs smoothly.
Most beers taste better the closer you are to the brewery. Heineken, for example, is actually drinkable in Europe. Get a couple of pints and see for yourself.
I had it at Shannon Airport. I love Guinness. I was also on my way home from a deployment to Bosnia with my feet touching my ancestral Irish homeland for the first time. My experience might reflect a bit of bias. It was extra amazing in Ireland.
I have found that freshness matters quite a bit. Places in the US that have it on tap but don’t sell very much of it just aren’t as good and sometimes are pretty awful. You are a lot more likely to get fresh at the Dublin airport than most places that have it on tap in the US. If you haven’t had it from a well maintained tap at a location that sells a lot of it, you may notice a difference.
I usually pick Amstel if I’m at a place in the UK that only has mass produced lagers available. It’s not bad, I think Amstel is the same as Heineken in the USA.
It was extra amazing in Ireland.