St. Patrick's Day Shopping List

It's Pi Day, but we prefer talking about St. Patrick's Day. After all, a pint is much easier to measure than pi, especially because pints don't require anything to the right of the decimal point.

If your beverage of choice for St. Patrick's is beer, we certainly have suggestions for you. If you're adding some Irish Whiskey to your shopping list, click here for an in-depth discussion of that topic.

Great Lakes Brewing, Conway's Irish Ale. Ok, we're cheating a little here, as this is a domestic craft beer. A pint for Pa Conway! Great Lakes Brewing's co-owners’ grandfather and policeman who’d likely uphold that an Irish Ale with full-bodied caramel malt flavors is just the ticket. It's arrestingly smooth with a rap sheet of toasty biscuit and caramel malt flavor. This is a seasonal item, brewed fresh for the 2016 St. Patrick's Day. 6.5% ABV, 25 IBU's.

Murphy's Irish Stout. Murphy’s is an internationally recognized Irish stout,

brewed since 1856 in the iconic Lady’s Well Brewery, Cork. Classified as an Irish Dry Stout, Murphy’s is dark in color and medium-bodied. It is silky smooth with toffee & coffee undertones, almost no bitterness, and a irresistible creamy finish. 4.0% ABV.

Killian's Irish Red. In 12-packs or 6-packs. Properly called George Killian's Irish Red.

Appearance: Deep ruby red in color with a dense off-white foam.
Aroma: Roasted and toasted caramel characteristics with ale-like fruit esters.

Taste: Toasted/roasted caramel malt introduction with nice bready characteristics.
Mouth Feel: Full-bodied with medium carbonation.
Finish: Well-balanced with slight lingering citrus rind and subtle sweetness.

Harp Lager is a delicious, continental lager first brewed in 1960 by Guinness. Brewed using pure water from the Cooley Mountains in Ireland, the beer has retained its trademark crisp taste, with a slight buttery aroma. Mix Harp with Guinness Draught to create the authentic Half & Half. 5.0% ABV.

You may also want to consider Innis & Gunn Irish Whiskey Cask. A Scottish beer, aged in Irish Whiskey casks. That's a movie plot, isn't it? And there's always Guinness.

We also know that our readers enjoy a little Irish cream liqueur. This is an extremely versatile category, suitable on its own, in a cocktail, or in coffee (hot or iced!). Everyone knows about Baileys Irish Cream and its several flavors. We also carry Carolan's, Dream Catcher, Emmet's, Maloney's and St. Brendan's.

The basic premise of this category is the blending of Irish whiskey and Irish dairy cream. Each producer has their own recipe, and we recommend trying them all!

Irish Mist Honey Liqueur. If you want something different for St. Patrick's Day, stop here. Irish Mist was the first liqueur to be produced in Ireland and is currently the only brand worldwide to have the word "Irish" in its registered name. Commercial production began in 1947 at Tullamore, County, Offaly. Irish Mist is based on an ancient recipe for heather wine, a spirit blended with honey, herbs and spices. The chieftains and nobles of Ireland’s ancient clans drank heather wine for centuries. Irish Mist, Ireland’s legendary Irish whiskey liqueur, is a classical, premium liqueur made from a unique blend of Irish whiskey, honey, herbs and other spirits. Irish Mist can also be used in a range of cocktails, as well as in hot coffee.

"Sláinte" to all as we celebrate St. Patrick's Day!