Starting in the 1980's in the US and in the last two decades in The UK and elsewhere there has been a resurgence of interest in small scale brewing. The revival can be linked to a demand from consumers for a more authentic drinking experience as well as a realization that global brewing giants are unlikely to be the custodians of traditional brewing recipes.  The campaign for real ale in the UK has been very successful in promoting craft beers and given a choice, many drinkers will opt for a locally produced beverage even if initially out of curiosity.

   Ireland currently has more than 16 micro breweries (a micro brewery is classed as one producing less than 30 Hecto litres per year) and changes in excise duty introduced in 2005 have improved the viability of the industry. A visitor walking into a pub in Dungarvan, Ballyferriter or Templemore asking for a pint of the local beer will be given just that and jobs and profits remain in the locality.

  Many drinkers today are probably not aware of the ingredients or brewing style that makes their favourite pint special, but for the curious, help is at hand!  Moneygall brewing is a project to promote knowledge of craft beers through brewing demonstrations and other activities and whether your passion is a hoppy ale, a robust porter or a plain dry stout, we can get you started on making it with four simple ingredients:  water, malted barley, hops and yeast.

I have had an interest in beers and brewing for years and having first experimented with brewing kits in my twenties, I finally got around to dedicating a section of the basement to all grain brewing just over a year ago.   The equipment is mostly homemade and generally from recycled materials so all grain brewing doesn't necessarily have to be an expensive hobby. (Mind you, experience from the day job as a renewable energy and insulation contractor helped as access to used vessels and tools of the trade certainly helped)  

        The brewing process can generally be split into four steps being mashing (getting the sugars out of the grain), Straining & Rincing  (drawing off the sugary wort), Boiling (to impart hop flavours and sterilise) and Fermenting (allowing yeast to turn sugars into alcohol and other substances) and it's the grain bill (proportion of the different grains for mashing), yeast type and variations in those steps that give each beer it's own special character.  

  My brewery would generally be classed as a half barrel set up, capable of producing batches of 20-40 litres, although I usually keep to 20L for home use (unless an important visitor is expected, perhaps the odd president of the U.S.A etc., when we might go the whole hog!)  I tend to brew ale styles (pale ale, amber ale, brown ale, porter and stout to mention a few) as they are native to the country and generally suited to the water and weather.  While technically, it's possible to brew almost any style at home, the low fermentation temperatures for lager styles require refrigeration so my philosophy is to keep it simple.  Happy brewing!

  Matthew Collison, Moneygall Brewing.

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