Hawk's Rock Distillery & White Hag Brewery

For the latest episode of the Beár Bia podcast, we hit the road for Sligo City to spend some quality time in the company of a master whiskey blender, a legendary brewer, a local oyster producer and a publican par excellence! 

It all took place in the cosy surroundings of Hargadon's, a traditional gastropub and bottle shop. Co-owner Morgan Kerins was there to greet us and talked us through its great history as well as all the many elements that make this pub one of the finest in the country. They include how they source so much of their award-winning food from their own locality and how they grow their own microgreens in a nearby polytunnel. 

We then set about enjoying some Sligo Oyster Experience oysters that had just been picked by co-owner Aisling Kelly's team. Served as is (but with an optional splash of Scarlet for Yer Ma, the Dublin hot sauce!), they were imbued with a soft sweetness and a slight hint of minerality that Aisling tells us comes from the Garavogue river that washes out onto the seabed. 

Quite fitting that the oysters would then be paired with the inaugural Garavogue 20-Year-Old Single Malt Irish Whiskey. This is the first release from Sazerac's newly rebranded distillery on the shores of Lough Gill. It was crafted by Ireland's first female master blender, Helen Mulholland, who was very kindly there to tell us all about its intricacies. It's a double-distilled beauty aged in a complex mix of casks – including French Muscat, French Sauternes, Spanish Pedro Ximénez Sherry and Barbadian Rum. Every sip brought on another rich, intense flavour, brightly displaying Helen's decades of experience. 

To be able to enjoy this supremely well-made whiskey with oysters picked within the same locality of the distillery was a remarkable experience. And one that can be very easily replicated by simply swinging by Hargadon's in Sligo on any given day... 

Not that it was our intention, but this episode could easily have been themed around "Surf & Turf" as we went from shellfish to beef carpaccio for our second pairing of the day. Thinly sliced Sligo beef fillet, sourced just around the corner from Clarke's Butchers, was dressed with Hargadon's own microgreens as well as Parmesan cheese shavings and truffle oil. The 28 days of ageing gave the beef the softest texture along with a warm umami pungency. 

For its accompaniment,  Bob Coggins from The White Hag Brewery was on hand with some of his Red IPA. Established in 2013 by Bob and his partners, The White Hag team not only have a world-class range of internationally distributed beers, but their taproom and annual "Hagstravganza" summer festival are both huge attractions. There was a sour sweetness to the beer that provided the perfect counterbalance to the beef; the sharp umami of the meat lingered in the background while the malt and hops of the beer worked their magic.

Tune into what is a fantastic (slightly long!) episode that relishes the bounty Sligo has to offer. 

The Beár Bia podcast is available across all platforms, including here on Spotify.