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Very sensible advice there - re journalists and magazine!! As soon as we are producing consistantly we will be in touch for taste testing!

My dream is to open a brew pub but it is not something I would even consider trying in Ireland as it is just to difficult at the moment.
Some day I will move to the US and see if I can get one going. Probably a pipe dream but we need to have them as I doubt Star Ship captain is possible where as brew pub owner is at least possible <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->

I wish you the best of luck though, If you have the drive to make it succeed then I am sure you will.

I think the brewpub is a solid business model for Ireland. Having your own outlet means that you are not as dependant on the Irish publican to take your beer. It doesn't mean that you can't sell your beer elsewhere as well, but it means you can eliminate the macro fizz competition form one bar. It might also make publicans more likely to take a tap, as they can see your customers drinking it, so why not theirs?

I think looking at what has already succeeded in Ireland is the way forward and if you look at the most successful micro in the country, the Porterhouse, you will find that it is a brewpub which has grown into a microbrewery and pub chain.

Another example is the Franciscan well. You can now get their beers in quite a few pubs in Cork and further afield, but a very large proportion of their sales is still through their own outlet. Would they have survived the first few years if they had not had that pub?

I know that Biddy Early was also a brewpub and after many years of brewing, it failed but, as the brewer himself said, that has more to do with the decline of the rural pub than with the microbrewery industry. The place is out in the middle of nowhere and it always had to sell macro beer along with the micro brews to get the locals in. I would not advise anyone to buy/open a pub of any kind in a rural area, let alone a brewpub.

In the right location, with decent beer, a well run brewpub is, in my opinion, the best bet for a successful microbrewery in Ireland.

Just to add to Séans sound advice - I also think a brewpub is a good model and one thing to bear in mind is that the pub owner and brewer need not be one and the same. A partnership model is also possible which I believe is the approach taken by the Franciscan Well. I imagine with this approach you would need to pick your partner carefully and good legal agreements would need to be put in place to protect the investment of both parties.

Yes picking your partner pub if not starting it directly yourself is a good idea. Look a Messrs <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->

The Bull and Castle is one that would do very well if it ever became a brew pub as it already has a loyal customer base.

It already has a knowledgeable and understanding manager.

&amp;quot;oblivious&amp;quot;:1y6lsahy wrote: Best of luck, if you don't have your own pub the best model to follow is Galways Hookers by doing something different[/quote:1y6lsahy]

When you say do something different like Galway Hookers, how woould you describe what they did?