Big news from the brewery floor - our Ór Dubh Irish Stout has been named a finalist for Blas na hÉireann, Ireland's national food and drink awards. It's the biggest blind-tasting competition on the island, and we couldn't be prouder to see our stout standing among the finalists heading into this year's awards.
For Derek and Aleks, this nomination is the latest chapter in a journey that started as a hobby in their own kitchen ten years ago. It was a gold medal win for the same recipe - the Ór Dubh Stout - at the National Homebrew Championship that gave Derek the confidence to turn a passion project into Cavan's only microbrewery. As Derek put it at the time, "That win gave us the spur to say 'okay, maybe we could do this as a business if people are liking the beer so much.'"
Since getting our brewing licence earlier this year, every batch of Ór Dubh has been brewed, hand-filled and labelled right here at our unit in the Cavan Enterprise Centre - small batches of 200 litres at a time, done properly rather than quickly.
Dark, roasty and smooth, Ór Dubh (4.3% ABV) was built to honour traditional Irish stout brewing while still tasting completely at home today. It's brewed with Irish malted barley, carefully selected hops and yeast, and treated local water - the same philosophy that runs through everything we make at Bréifne Gael: small batch, honest, and rooted in Cavan.
We'll be watching closely as Gold, Silver and Bronze winners are revealed in the Blas Village in Dingle on 2nd October. Win or place, simply reaching the finalist stage among the best food and drink producers in Ireland is a huge moment for a nano-brewery that started life as a kitchen experiment.
We'll share updates as October approaches - and if you haven't tried Ór Dubh yet, now's a good time to see what the fuss is about.
Sláinte,
The Bréifne Gael Brewing Team
Déanaimid beoir iontach.