Pizza and beer? What more could you ask for...
Rascals Brewing was founded in 2014 by Emma Devlin and Cathal O'Donoghue, who discovered a passion for homebrewing while living in New Zealand. Since its inception, Rascals has grown from a homebrew kit in a bathroom in Rathmines to a fully-fledged brewery in Inchicore, complete with an impressive bar, outdoor seating, pizza restaurant and a behind the scenes area where visitors can watch the Rascals brewing process in action.
The Rascals Brewing tour
The best way to see what Rascals has to offer is to visit the brewery on Friday, Saturday or Sunday when the guided tours take place. Lorien, the tour guide, is one of Rascals' longest-serving employees, so when you join her on a tour – you're let in on all the brewery's secrets.
There are two tour options available: the regular tour which costs €10 and lasts for 25 minutes, and the premium tour, which costs €20 and lasts for 45 minutes. We recommend spending that bit extra and booking the premium tour. As well as the tour of the brewery, it includes a guided tasting of some of Rascals' delicious beers plus a flatbread from the brewery's wood-fired pizza oven. Expect to go completely behind the scenes while on your tour, as Lorien will explain the different grains that are used in each beer, invite you to smell the different hops, show you the labelling process in action and much much more.
The Rascals Brewing tasting experience
After your guided tour, if you've opted for the premium experience, Lorien will sit you down in the tasting area to try four of Rascals' best-selling beers. We got to try two regulars, Hazy Days Session Pale Ale and Yankee White IPA, as well as two specials, Black Horse Stout and Dublinerweisse Elderberry Sour.
During the tasting experience, Lorien explains the difference between each type of brew, giving some background info on each and talking about the flavour profile of the beers. The premium tour also includes a delicious flatbread with tomato pesto from the Rascals kitchen so you can enjoy a freshly cooked bite while enjoying your beer tasting flight.
The Rascals pizza kitchen
If the beer tasting works up your appetite, you should definitely stick around to enjoy some pizza - booking in advance is encouraged right now due to limited capacity. The wood-fired pizza is made onsite, alongside salads, kids' meals and weekly specials. Prices start at just €11.50 and if you don't fancy any of the options on the menu, you can create your own!
We love the 'Meat Me In Inchicore' pizza, which is made with tomato sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, Gubbeen chorizo and roasted peppers and 'The Dublin Ate', which is topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, Clonakilty black pudding, goats cheese and red onion.
With current restrictions in place, we highly recommend that you book your tour (and table in the pizza restaurant) in advance on the Rascals site or by calling (01) 538 2051.
#WIN:
But of course, the only way to truly judge Rascals Brewery is to visit yourself. That's why, we've teamed up with Rascals Brewing to give not one but two (!!) lucky Irish Tatler readers the chance to win a premium tour of Rascals HQ for you and a friend. Simply click here to enter!
Tours at Rascals Brewing are available on Fridays at 5 pm and Saturdays and Sundays at 3.30 pm and 5 pm. The regular tour costs €10 per person while the premium tour costs €20 per person and includes a tasting flight and flatbread. Visit rascalsbrewing.com for more info.
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