Say It Ain’t So, Old Sod!
Good Lord. Reuters is reporting that Guinness is falling out of favor in Ireland and *shudder* wine is increasingly popular.
But the cliche of the Irish pub filled with Guinness drinkers is giving way to a different picture as new wealth, new opportunities and immigration transform tastes and drinking habits in one of Europe's fastest growing economies.
Alongside the decline of Guinness is an increasing appetite for wine, spirits, cider and imported beer.
"You'll still sell Guinness, but you'll sell the likes of wheat beers, beers from the Czech Republic, beers from Poland," said Eddy Martin, who runs the Bailey Bar.
"Beer sales are declining while the amount of wine is phenomenal. Before, people would say they wanted a white wine, now they'll say they want a Chardonnay," he said at the bar in the heart of Dublin's smartest shopping district.
Latest figures from global drinks giant Diageo, which owns Guinness, show local sales for the brand down about 7 percent in the six months to the end of December 2006 from a year before. Wine now accounts for over a fifth of alcohol drunk in Ireland.
On my son's first deployment, his flight made a stopover in Ireland at Shannon airport. He was able to visit the Guinness shop there in the airport and is very proud of the shirt he got there. Which he refuses to give to his father. (That's a hint, son).
World news | Gaius Thursday, 15 March , 2007
By TC@LeatherPenguin, Thursday, 15 March , 2007 @ 11:16 am
sheesh, I know it’s the Ides of March, but Celtic winos? That’s Italy and France’s shtick!
I was worried about getting hit by a car today; instead, my brain gets mowed down by a semi! Ireland no longer the land of Guinness? Unpossible!
(looks longingly at my stash of single malt whiskies)
“They’ll be coming for you lads next.”
By Blackhawk, Thursday, 15 March , 2007 @ 8:50 pm
To TCLP (the ONLY penguin on the right side): Aye, lad. Set phasers on inebriate.
TO Gaius: . OK, if it really, really, REALLY, means it, I’ve got a solution for you AND you’re son’s (and daughter-in-law’s) awkward situation. I happen to have a vintage, circa 1998 (memory a bit fuzzy here…) gen-u-ine, Guinness T-shirt for you. It is a Large (not that there’s anything wrong with that). (or that I’m making a statement. Just saying. Oh, fer Chris’ sakes…). Anyhoo, I ‘acquired’ it upon one Fasching’s Fest (along with my 2 Guinness mugs!), amid many…um…celebratory…um…did I mention the T-shirt?
Anyhoo, it’s your’s, if it will settle this potentially mongosso feud.
Caveat: the next morning, I did notice that the shirt, black with Guinness harp, said ‘Genius’. Hope that’s not a problem.
By Gaius, Thursday, 15 March , 2007 @ 9:05 pm
Heh. I have several genuine Guinness glass mugs (very, very heavy glass mugs, I might add) that I actually won in a darts tournament sponsored by Guinness back in the ’70’s. I’m guessing those puppies are a bit hard to find for the collectors out there!
By Blackhawk, Thursday, 15 March , 2007 @ 9:19 pm
Gaius: re: mugs. Ya, dontcha know, they can be useful in hand-to-hand combat. Haven’t changed in a millennia.
By Gaius, Friday, 16 March , 2007 @ 7:35 am
Actually, I think that is why mugs were invented. Holding ale was merely a bonus.
By TC@LeatherPenguin, Friday, 16 March , 2007 @ 9:22 am
re: mugs. That’s the beauty of the heavy ones; smack ‘em upside an eedjits head and they leave a dent, but they don’t break!