On todays episode I got to spend some time with Justin Baird back in November. Justin is the manager of Trailhead Liquor in Bend in Central Oregon and he’s a big Irish Whiskey lover.  I’ve known Justin for a couple of years as we’re regulars at Trailhead Liquor when we visit, and I finally got to sit down with him and get him on the record, so to speak, and we had a great old chat.  We chatted about Justin, his love of whiskey and spirits and we chatted about Liquor sales and distribution in Oregon as it’s a Control State. We talked about “Truck Chasers” a new expression to me, and ..read more

On this episode of My Favorite Irish I got to spend some time recently with Gillian Fitzgerald, co-owner of the famed Casements Bar, in the Mission District of San Francisco.   I first met Gillian back in the spring of 2023 when I visited Casements ahead of an event to fill my belly with some of their delicious Fish ‘ n Chips.  And ahead of another event in San Francisco we sat down in the outdoor snug at Casements with a dram in hand and had a grand ole chin wag.  We talked about Gillian’s journey to Casements, growing up in Co. Meath, her first dram, the Irish Whiskey renai ..read more

On this episode of "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." I got to spend some time back in May with James Doherty, owner, and Graeme Bell, distiller at the Ardara Distillery in Donegal which is home to Sliabh Liag Distillers. Hands up, it was my first time visiting Donegal, and I suspect I’m not the only Irish person who’s guilty of that. I got there at the end of a wonderful 6 day road trip that took me through Galway, Mayo, Sligo, and then into Donegal and everywhere I went on the road trip the welcome was worthy of the Cead Mile Failte, or One Hundred Thousand Welcomes that were famous for. Nowhere mo ..read more

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with fellow Dub’s Michelle and Gareth McAllister the owners of Ahascragh Distillery in the village of the same name which is in East Galway. When I visited, in mid-May of 2023, Michelle and Gareth were deep in preparation for the opening of their distillery in a converted water mill.  We talked about their dream to one day distill in Ireland, the styles of whiskey that they will be producing, where they’ll source their grain, and the style of Single Pot Still Irish whiskey that they will ultimately produce. And we talked abou ..read more

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with Walt Averill. Walt is married to the Belfast Born Maire Murphy who I’ve known for a number of years and together, yes they work together, they founded their company Capabunga over a decade ago. Walt is a keen Irish Whiskey drinker and tells the story of bringing some Redbreast from Belfast to California over 20 years ago. We talked about their business, the pandemic, travel, golf, and lots more and of course, we talked about and tasted, his Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is Powers Johns Lane. Listen along… Find out more ab ..read more

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with Sean McKane about his favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey. Sean, a fellow Dub, is the proud owner of the Sixpence Public House in The Hague or Den Haag in the Netherlands and we talked about Sean’s journey to owning the Sixpence Public House, the fine selection of Irish whiskeys that they offer there, how and where they source that fine selection from and of course we talked about and tasted, his Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is Green Spot. PLEASE NOTE that we had some audio issues with this recording. Sean sounds great but I'm a l ..read more

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with Chef Bob Hurley. Bob’s retired now but is still active in culinary circles here in Napa Valley supporting our community. Bob was always an avid supporter of Irish whiskey at his restaurant, Hurley’s, in Yountville and we talked about Bob, retirement, his previous and forthcoming trips to Ireland, and how we came to be such a fan of Irish whiskey, and of course, we talked about and tasted, his Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is Powers Johns Lane. CLARIFICATIONS: Pot Still (Irish) Whiskey / Irish Pot Still Whiskey: This is re ..read more

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with Allan Dwyer. Allan is the president of the Irish Whiskey Society here in America and he’s been an avid supporter and drinker of Irish whiskey for a couple of decades. During that time he’s seen the modern Irish whiskey industry grow from the number of distilleries that you could count on one hand to where it is today, with over 4 dozen working distilleries. We talked about Allan, his work with the Irish Whiskey Society here in America, including the launch of the society's inaugural awards this year, the IZZYs, and of course ..read more

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with Pat Burke, Oakland born and raised, of Irish descent who traces his lineage back to Cork and Limerick. We talked about Pat, his reputation as a world-class barbecuer, his visits to Ireland over the years, and of course, his Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is a very, very special bottle of Paddy Irish Whiskey that Pat bought on a trip to Ireland back in 1984, yes 1984! Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.  ..read more

As part of the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." series, I got to chat with Erevan O'Neill, a (West) Corkman, neighbour, structural engineer, Irish Whiskey lover, and all-around great guy! We talked about Erevan, his name, which is one of the most unusual Irish names that I've come across, his journey to Napa, and of course, his current Favo(u)rite Irish Whiskey, which is Clonakilty Single Grain Bordeaux Cask Finish, from Co. Cork! See Erevan's work HERE: https://OneDesignSF.com/ Find out more about me and my Irish Whiskey work and watch the "My Favo(u)rite Irish..." Video series on YouTube here.&nb ..read more