Ireland!

We arrived on the Irish coast four days ago and are working our way towards Cork. We are now ensconced in a marina near Dublin waiting for southerlies to subside so we can continue south. We've been whiling away our time with tourista-type adventures, most notably our search for the perfect pint.

The folklore is that you can rate your Guinness from one to five, with five being one you never forget, four is one you finish with joy, an average three is one you drink without comment, two is one you don't finish, and a one-star Guinness you reject immediately. According to our sources, the quality of the Guinness varies not only from pub to pub but from tap to tap.

When we first arrived in a town called Malahide we were directed to a tap in a pub called James Gibney's & Sons and ordered a draw. Definite 5-star, not only on its merits but because it was our first Guinness in Ireland. Creamy, smooth, it went down so easy as to require a follow-on pint.

Interestingly, the Malahide pint was better than the one we had in the "Gravity Bar" -- a glass enclosed circular room at the top of the Guinness brewery with a 360 degree view of Dublin -- where the sample pint was served at the end of our tour there. This one would have been a four-star based on taste and quality but because of the location and occasion will always be remembered, so technically is a five star.

Last night, we had a couple of pints in a pub named the Weirs in Dun Laoghaire (pronounced "Wares" and "Dun Leery" - go figure), our current port, which were very, very strong fours based on merits -- taste, texture, etc. The only reason why they didn't rate a five is because, with our quest for the best pint becoming a nightly obsession, I suspect we will have had so many good ones by the time we leave here that we will not be able to specifically recall the Weirs.

So, of course, there is no point in drinking all the extraordinarily fine Scottish Ales I stocked up on, which now languish in Windleblo's hold. Nor does it make sense to buy Guinness in a bottle as I am sure it would not match up to a pint drawn in a pub, even a three-star.

Needless to say, we are being totally spoiled here beer-wise.

We head south tomorrow and will be in Cork by Sunday where we will continue our quest for the perfect pint.