There's no denying that Ireland historically brewed dark ales because of our water, so we can surely make a reasonable claim to some variant of red ale. Whether it's much different from English keg bitter doesn't really matter.
These Irish-produced palers are obviously bloody lovely, but I don't see how we can make a pretence of having developed a separate regional style. Maybe 50 years down the line we can assess the situation. The red has a more legitimate claim to an "Irish" tag based on tradition.
Rather than have a "beer-off", I think a Beoir court should be established to debate and legitimise styles etc. As one of the judges (self-appointed), I suggest we adopt a similar costume to that of the German constitutional court. See picture: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="
www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcri...ith-conditions.html#">
www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/fina ... ions.html#
I would also favour an adherence, where possible, to Brehon Law.
