The Porterhouse Brewing Company
Encyclopedia
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, London, England and New York in the Financial District. It was founded in 1989 by Liam La Hart and Oliver Hughes and now has 6 premises.
History
IrelandIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
has traditionally had a long history of brewing
Brewing
Brewing is the production of beer through steeping a starch source in water and then fermenting with yeast. Brewing has taken place since around the 6th millennium BCE, and archeological evidence suggests that this technique was used in ancient Egypt...
. At the beginning of the nineteenth century there were over two hundred breweries in the country, producing a wide range of Irish beer
Irish beer
Though Ireland is better known for stout, 63% of the beer sold in the country is lager. Stout makes up 32% of the market, with ale the remaining 5%....
. This number dropped significantly by the twentieth century due to the dominance of a few large and famous breweries. Today, there are only about 15 breweries in the country, with most producing mass-produced beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
, backed by formidable marketing budgets.
It was in this environment that, in 1989, Liam La Hart and Oliver Hughes bought a run-down building in Bray
Bray
Bray is a town in north County Wicklow, Ireland. It is a busy urban centre and seaside resort, with a population of 31,901 making it the fourth largest in Ireland as of the 2006 census...
, County Wicklow
County Wicklow
County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...
, which became the first Porterhouse. In 1996, the Porterhouse brewpub was opened in the Temple Bar
Temple Bar, Dublin
Temple Bar is an area on the south bank of the River Liffey in central Dublin, Ireland. Unlike the areas surrounding it, Temple Bar has preserved its medieval street pattern, with many narrow cobbled streets. It is promoted as "Dublin's cultural quarter" and has a lively nightlife that is popular...
area of Dublin city centre. The group grew to open their next bar in Covent Garden London on 2000 with the then Taoiseach of Ireland, Bertie Ahern
Bertie Ahern
Patrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern is a former Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 26 June 1997 to 7 May 2008....
doing the honours of opening it. They opened Porterhouse North in Glasnevin in 2004, bought Judge Roy Beans and Lillie's Bordello in 2004 and converted Judge Roy Beans into The Porterhouse Central. In 2010 they were the only Irish Company to exhibit at The Shanghai World Expo, dubbed the Economic Olympics. They are seeking JV opportunities in China. In January 2011, they opened their doors on Pearl Street in the Financial District of New York in the oldest building in New York, The Fraunces Tavern where George Washington bade farewell to his officers over two centuries ago.
Beers
With the exception of TSB, the draught beers are filteredFiltered beer
Bright beer is beer in which yeast is no longer in suspension. There are several methods used for clearing yeast from beer, from waiting for the yeast to drop of its own accord to filtering it.-Dropping bright:...
, kegged and served under pressure.
The regular beers are:
- Wrasslers 4X Stout, a 5% abvAlcohol by volumeAlcohol by volume is a standard measure of how much alcohol is contained in an alcoholic beverage .The ABV standard is used worldwide....
stoutStoutStout is a dark beer made using roasted malt or barley, hops, water and yeast. Stouts were traditionally the generic term for the strongest or stoutest porters, typically 7% or 8%, produced by a brewery....
claimed to be made to a recipe originally brewed by Deasy's of West Cork in the early 1900s; - Oyster Stout;
- Plain Porter; Winner of the gold medal at the Brewing Industry International Awards for the best stout in the world in 1998 and again in 2011.
- Turner's Sticklebract Bitter (TSB), a 3.7% abv session bitter first brewed in July 2000 to celebrate the opening of The Porterhouse in Covent Garden, London;
- Porterhouse Red, a 4.4% abv Irish red ale;
- An Brain Blasta, a 7% abv strong ale;
- Hersbrucker, a 5% abv pale lagerPale lagerPale lager is a very pale to golden-coloured beer with a well attenuated body and a varying degree of noble hop bitterness. The brewing process for this beer developed in the mid 19th century when Gabriel Sedlmayr took pale ale brewing techniques back to the Spaten Brewery in Germany and applied it...
; - Temple Bräu, a 4.3% abv pale lager;
- Chiller, a 4.2% abv pale lager.
In addition, there are a range of seasonal draught beers including:
- Chocolate Truffle Stout (Spring)
- Hemp Beer (Summer)
- Hop Head (Summer)
- Kölsch (Autumn)
- Vienna Dark Lager (Winter)
- Alt (Winter)
In 2009, the brewery launched a range of bottle-conditioned versions of its beers, beginning with Hop Head and Plain Porter. These are packaged in 33cl bottles.
Bottling now Plain Porter, Wrasslers 4X, Oyster Stout, Porterhouse Red, Brain Blasta, Hersbrucket, Celebration Stout and Down 'n' Outz.
Down 'n' Outz was launched in 2010 with lead singer of Def Leppard, Joe Elliott and his side project band also called the Down 'n' Outz. The beer recipie was chosen by Joe and was physically brewed by his own hand along with The Porterhouse masterbrewer. The group have plans to distribute the beer globally.
Festivals
The Porterhouse Brewing Company regularly hosts beer festivals. Every October sees an OktoberfestOktoberfest
Oktoberfest, or Wiesn, is a 16–18 day beer festival held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, running from late September to the first weekend in October. It is one of the most famous events in Germany and is the world's largest fair, with more than 5 million people attending every year. The...
, and there have been many Belgian beer
Belgian beer
Beer in Belgium varies from pale lager to lambic beer and Flemish red. There are approximately 178 breweries in the country, ranging from international giants to microbreweries..-History:...
festivals, as well as a Winter Beer Festival, an Australia Day
Australia Day
Australia Day is the official national day of Australia...
Festival and a Beer and Whiskey Festival Festival.
- The Beer and Whiskey Festival in 2011 was in its 8th year. Fourteen breweries and 3 distilleries from all over Ireland showcase their beers and whiskies. Free beer and whisky sampling sessions take place throughout the bars pver the 10 day festival. Each bar has a dedicated beer bar for the duration. It usually runs from the end of March through early April.
- The Belgian Beer Festival usually takes place in the Summer and showcases bottled and draught beer from all over Belgium with free beer sampling sessions taking places throughtout the 10 day festival. This year, 2011, the group is running a Summer of Love for June, July and August. They will showcase fruit beers with some guest bottled and draught for the month of June, for July they will have American Pale Ales and for August they will have wheat beers.
- Every Thursday they have beer tastings in their bars. They sample guest beers as well as their own brews and groups are limited to 20. They require advance booking and are free to take part. Check out Facebook for details, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Porterhouse-Bars/352400873236
- The Oktoberfest runs from mid to end of October in all bars. They brew a special brew for the festival and ranges from a Kolsch, Alt, Herbsrucker Oktoberfest and Kolsch Oktoberfest. This is one of their most successful festivals and draws people from all over.
Pubs in order of opening date
- The Porterhouse Inn, Strand Road, BrayBrayBray is a town in north County Wicklow, Ireland. It is a busy urban centre and seaside resort, with a population of 31,901 making it the fourth largest in Ireland as of the 2006 census...
, Co. WicklowCounty WicklowCounty Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Ireland.(1989)
- The original Porterhouse opened 1989 and incorporating a 16-room inn.
- The Porterhouse Temple BarTemple Bar, DublinTemple Bar is an area on the south bank of the River Liffey in central Dublin, Ireland. Unlike the areas surrounding it, Temple Bar has preserved its medieval street pattern, with many narrow cobbled streets. It is promoted as "Dublin's cultural quarter" and has a lively nightlife that is popular...
(1996)
- 16-18 Parliament Street, Dublin 2, Ireland.
- The Porterhouse (Covent GardenCovent GardenCovent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
) (2000)
- 21-22 Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, London WC2 E7NA, England.
- The Porterhouse North (2004)
- Cross Guns Bridge, GlasnevinGlasnevinGlasnevin is a largely residential neighbourhood of Dublin, Ireland.-Geography:A mainly residential neighbourhood, it is located on the Northside of the city of Dublin . It was originally established on the northern bank of the River Tolka...
, Dublin 9, Ireland. - (Considered to be an art deco landmark)
- The Porterhouse Central (2004)
- 45 - 47 Nassau Street, Dublin 2, Ireland.
- The Porterhouse had a pub/restaurant at the 2010 Shanghai ExpoExpo 2010Expo 2010, officially Expo 2010 Shanghai China was held on both banks of the Huangpu River in the city of Shanghai, China, from May 1 to October 31, 2010. It was a major World Expo in the tradition of international fairs and expositions, the first since 1992...
- The Porterhouse at Fraunces Tavern, 54 Pearl Street, New York, 10004 (2011)
The Porterhouse also owns a chain of Tapas Bars,
- The Port House, 64A South William Street, Dublin 2, (opened in 2006)
- Bar Pintxo, 12 Eustace Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2 (opened in 2007)
- The Port House Ibericos, 5-6 The Pembroke Cottages, Pembroke District, Dundrum, Dublin 14.
See www.porthouse.ie for more info
The group also owns a club, The Eclectic and hotel at their Bray location on the seafront.
The Porterhouse also own Lillie's Bordello nightlub, boasting Bono, Colin Farrell, Def Leppard, Neil Jordan and Westlife as regulars. It has also been visited by Christina Aguelira, Kylie Minogue, Pierce Brosnan, Bjork, Prince, Take That, Helena Christiansen, Naomi Campbell and many more.
The brewery is located in Ballycoolin in Rosemount Business Park.
Distillery
The Porterhouse has announced plans to build a distillery in Dingle, Co. Kerry. Products envisioned include:- Dingle Green (Bourbon-cask-aged whiskey)
- Dingle Gold (Sherry-cask-aged whiskey)
- Celebration (Limited-edition 5 year old single malt whiskey)
- Founding Fathers (Whiskey made to the specifications of individual investors)
- Whale Tail (Single malt)
- Dingle Cream (Cream liqueur)
- Dingle Dew (Aperitif)