Top Breweries in Ireland

Whiplash Beer ★ 4.8 · Dublin

docklands · 67B Cherry Orchard Industrial Estate, Ballyfermot, Dublin 10, D10 F657

Whiplash Beer in Ballyfermot Dublin 10, the craft label by Alex Lawes brewing hazy IPA and a clean lager, the city's most ubiquitous craft draft.

Tip: Find Whiplash at P. Mac's, Underdog and Fidelity on Queen Street. The Body Riddle IPA is the year-round flagship.

Hope Beer Brewery ★ 4.7 · Dublin

howth-suburb · Unit 1, Howth Junction Business Park, Kilbarrack Road, Dublin 5, D05 H2K2

Hope Beer Brewery in Kilbarrack near Howth Junction in Dublin 5, an independent micro-brewery with a German-spec brewhouse and a taproom inside.

Tip: Tour runs around 90 minutes and includes a tasting of the core range; €20 per person. Take the DART to Howth Junction, the brewery is a five-minute walk.

Galway Bay Brewery ★ 4.7 · Galway

salthill · 226 Upper Salthill, Galway, H91 Y1V3

Galway Bay Brewery founded in 2009 runs nine city pubs and exports across Ireland; the Of Foam and Fury DIPA is the flagship that put Galway craft on the map.

Rascals Brewing Co ★ 4.6 · Dublin

the-liberties · Goldenbridge Industrial Estate, Dublin 8, D08 V0F8

Rascals Brewing on the Goldenbridge Estate in Dublin 8, the brewpub and taproom of the husband-and-wife Inkwell brewery, the city's reference for craft pizza.

Tip: Taproom is a working pizza kitchen; the wood-fired Rascals margherita pairs with the in-house lager. Saturday brewery tours at 14:30.

Hopfully Brewing ★ 4.5 · Dublin

docklands · Wholesale brewery, Dublin

Hopfully Brewing, the Dublin craft beer label distributing modern hazy IPA and barrel-aged sours to specialty bars city-wide, no public taproom.

Tip: Find Hopfully draft at The Big Romance, P. Mac's and Underdog Bar; the four-pack retail at L. Mulligan's Wine Shop.

Galway Hooker Brewery ★ 4.5 · Galway

eyre-square · Deerpark, Oranmore, Co. Galway, H91 V6PF

Galway Hooker Brewery in Oranmore supplies Galway pubs with its Irish Pale Ale; named after the traditional Connemara fishing boat and brewed since 2006.

Bierhaus Craft Beers ★ 4.5 · Galway

latin-quarter · 2 Henry Street, Galway, H91 WK71

Bierhaus Tap on Henry Street Galway has 20 rotating craft taps with Irish and European lines; weekly tap-takeovers bring new breweries from across Ireland.

Stonewell Cider ★ 4.4 · Cork

West Cork · Nohoval, Belgooly, Kinsale, County Cork

Ireland's Supreme Champion premium cider, produced by husband-and-wife team Daniel and Geraldine Emerson since 2010 at their Nohoval farm near Kinsale.

Blacks Brewing and Distilling ★ 4.4 · Cork

City Centre · Blacks Lagoon, Cappagh, Kinsale, Cork, P17 AY10

Ireland's first co-located craft brewery and distillery, founded by Sam and Maudeline Black beside the Bandon River estuary near Kinsale. The distillery.

Franciscan Well Brewpub ★ 4.3 · Cork

Shandon and North Mall · 14B North Mall, Cork, T23 P264

Cork's original craft brewery, founded in 1998 on North Mall beside the medieval city wall and a monastic well that gives the pub its name. The Molson Coors.

Rising Sons Brewery ★ 4.3 · Cork

City Centre · 4 Cornmarket Street, Cork

Cork city's most visible craft brewery, operating a glass-fronted taproom on Cornmarket Street where brewery operations are visible from the bar.

Elbow Lane Brew and Smoke House ★ 4.3 · Cork

City Centre · 5-6 Oliver Plunkett Street, Cork

Cork's smallest production brewery, a nano-brewery embedded in a restaurant and smoke house on Oliver Plunkett Street. Opened in 2014, the Elbow Lane brewing.

Clonakilty Distillery ★ 4.3 · Cork

City Centre · The Waterfront, Scartagh, Clonakilty, County Cork, P85 N403

A purpose-built single malt Irish whiskey distillery on the Clonakilty waterfront, producing whiskey from Inchydoney headland water and local barley.

Teeling Whiskey Distillery ★ 4.3 · Dublin

the-liberties · 13-17 Newmarket, Dublin 8, D08 KD91

Teeling Whiskey on Newmarket in Dublin 8, the Liberties' first new distillery in 125 years, the working three-pot still and the city's modern Irish whiskey.

Tip: Distillery tour with three-whiskey tasting runs €25; the small-batch finish flights run €45.

Smithwick's Experience ★ 4.3 · Kilkenny

medieval-mile · 44 Parliament Street, Kilkenny, R95 VK54

Smithwick's Experience at Parliament Street sits on the abbey site where John Smithwick founded Ireland's oldest brewery in 1710, pint included in entry.

9 White Deer Brewery ★ 4.2 · Cork

City Centre · Killeen, Ballyvourney, County Cork

Based in the Gaeltacht region of Ballyvourney, one hour west of Cork city, 9 White Deer is one of Ireland's most innovative craft brewers. Named for the nine.

Cotton Ball Brewing Company ★ 4.2 · Cork

Mayfield · 18 Old Youghal Road, Mayfield, Cork, T23 AE78

Lynch family pub since 1874 with a microbrewery installed beneath the lounge in 2013. The ground-floor bar pours their own beers alongside Irish craft guests.

Guinness Storehouse ★ 4.2 · Dublin

the-liberties · St James's Gate, Dublin 8, D08 VF8H

Guinness Storehouse at St James's Gate in Dublin 8, the seven-floor brewery museum and the Gravity Bar's panoramic stout pour, the city's most-visited paid.

Tip: Pre-book online for cheaper tickets; the connoisseur experience runs €65 with two pours and a tour of the experimental brewery.

Sullivan's Taproom and Brewing Co ★ 4.2 · Kilkenny

john-street · 16 John Street Lower, Kilkenny

Sullivan's Taproom at The Glasshouse on John Street serves the award-winning Malting's Red Ale on rotational craft taps with wood-fired pizzas and burgers.

Eight Degrees Brewing ★ 4.1 · Cork

City Centre · Unit 4, Coolnanave Industrial Park, Dublin Road, Mitchelstown, County Cork

An award-winning craft brewery established at the foot of the Galtee mountains in Mitchelstown by New Zealander Scott Baigent and Australian Cameron Wallace.

West Cork Brewing Company ★ 4.1 · Cork

City Centre · Baltimore, County Cork

A small craft brewery in the fishing village of Baltimore, 90 minutes southwest of Cork city. Produces distinctive Irish craft beers including a Coffee.

Eight Degrees Brewing Cork Stockists ★ 4.1 · Cork

North Cork · Mitchelstown, County Cork (beers available citywide in Cork)

A Mitchelstown craft brewery founded in 2011 by New Zealander Scott Baigent, with Howling Gale Ale and Sunburnt Irish Red stocked across Cork.

Third Barrel Brewing ★ 4.1 · Dublin

the-liberties · Lower Camden Street, Dublin 8

Third Barrel Brewing in Dublin 8, a Liberties craft brewery doing modern IPA and stouts, with a small Friday-Saturday taproom and a serious wholesale draft.

Tip: Friday and Saturday taproom only; the rotating IPA flight runs €12. Six-packs to take home.

Connemara Brewing Co ★ 4.1 · Galway

salthill · Carraroe Industrial Estate, Carraroe, Co. Galway

Connemara Brewing in Carraroe is a Gaeltacht craft brewery led by Aine, brewing Irish ale and lager from Carraroe Industrial Estate using Connemara water.

Murphy's Brewery ★ 4.0 · Cork

City Centre · Leitrim Street, Cork

Cork's legendary stout brewery founded in 1856 and owned by Heineken since 1983. The Leitrim Street brewery is a working production site with heritage tours.

Jameson Distillery Bow Street ★ 4.0 · Dublin

north-inner-city · Bow Street, Dublin 7, D07 N9VH

Jameson Distillery on Bow Street in Smithfield Dublin 7, the original 1780 Jameson distillery turned visitor experience, three Irish whiskeys tasted and one.

Tip: Bow Street experience runs €25 with a comparative tasting; the Cask Workshop is the premium upgrade at €65.