It's just a couple of hours from Dublin and boasts spectacular coastlines, amazing heritage sites and some rather brilliant food & drink producers. We're talking about north county Down and the Ards peninsula, a culinary destination to rival any other on the island of Ireland.

Thanks to a kind invitation from the Irish Food Writers Guild and Visit Ards and North Down, we recently hopped on a whistlestop tour of this beautiful part of the world. In addition to local food markets, farm visits and an incredible walled garden, we took in two different distilleries. And each one laid on a local food pairing for us, perfectly matched with their own Irish spirits.

The first came in courtesy of Copeland Distilery. Located right on the shoreline of Donaghadee, this coastal distillery was built on the grounds of a former cinema. They produce a range of spirits including rum, vodka and Irish whiskey. It was their classic gin that was served to us that day which they distil with local botanicals like pine needles and the sea flower, pink maritima. Copeland's head bartender, Sean Pedlow, mixed up the classic gin into a Collins-style cocktail made with fresh autumnal pears, lemon and elderflower tonic water. The perfect accompaniment to a stunning dish prepared by the guest chefs, Roz Allen and Andy Turner from Hara at Home. This husband and wife team have a remarkable pedigree that has seen them work in Irish Michelin-starred restaurants to 5 star Caribbean hotels. They served up a house-made, beetroot-cured local salmon with apple, wilted fennel and horseradish.

For the second pairing, we made our way to the wonderful Echlinville Distilery in Kircubbin. Home to some of the most celebrated whiskeys in Ireland, such as the exceptional Dunville's - they also distill award-winning gins, vodkas and poitíns. We were truly spoiled by Jarlath Watson from the distillery team as he cracked open a bottle of the Echlinville, The Beginning - their single pot still. Every element of this 7-year-old whiskey was made on site, the barley is grown there before it is fermented, distilled, matured and bottled on the grounds. To help find a pairing for this landmark release, Laura Bradley from the pioneering retail store and delicatessen, Indie Füde. With a location in Comber and another in Belfast, Laura and her team have been unwavering advocates for independent food producers from all around Ireland. She chose to bring along the sumptuous Young Buck cheese, crafted by Mike Thomson of Mike's Fancy Cheese in Newtonards. A divine combo where the spice forward whiskey was tempered perfectly by the rich blue cheese.

We hope you enjoy this episode and a huge thank you again to Visit Ards North Down Tourism for inviting us up and helping us organise this episode.

Oisín & Dee

Tipperary might well be renowned the world over for its majestic castles and monuments, but here at Beár Bia HQ - the most important thing you need to know about it, is that it's Dee's home county! So it was obviously just a question of time before we made the "trip to Tipp" and tasted some of its best culinary offerings.

The Tipperary Food Producers network is a community of artisan producers working together to create quality, nourishing food and sustainability. We reached out to them to see what kinds of local food & drink pairings we could showcase and we were spoiled for choice. Their diverse community includes cheesemakers, beekeepers, fruit farmers, cider makers, butchers, bakers, and creators of various delightful products such as sauces, jams, ice cream, sorbet, vegetable oil, sweets, chocolates, crisps, corn tortillas and peanut butter.

Representing the Tipperary Food Producers Network on the day was Nuala Hickey, also of Hickey's Bakery in Clonmel whose amazing barm brack we sampled to start the day off nicely. We then hung out with James O'Donoghue, owner of Longways Cider who are based just outside of Carrick on Suir. He brought a few bottles of his Tipperary Cider with him as well some Con's Apple Cider from The Apple Farm.

James paired Con's Apple Cider with some excellent bacon ribs from Crowe's Farm & Butchers who are based in Dundrum, Tipperary and have been in operation since 1981. They were braised in the cider itself before being slow cooked with spices. The cool dryness of the cider cut through the rich meat and made for a beautiful autumnal all Tipperary food & drink combo.

For the second pairing, James cracked open a few of his own Longways Tipperary Cider. He then turned his attention to the golden fork winning Cashel Blue cheese and cut off small pieces to place on the Tipperary made Blanco Niño smoky chipotle corn tortilla chips. This totally surprised us and turned out to be a decadent, yet perfectly flavour filled tableside or bar room snack. Rich, unctuous blue cheese spread on a spicy, crunchy tortilla chip plays wonderfully against the crisp multi layered cider.

Up and down the 32 counties, there are vast amounts of bar, restaurant and hotel owners whose great work in celebrating the entire Irish culinary landscape needs to be showcased. They are Irish Hospitality Heroes and for our sixth episode, we wanted to shine a light on what the newly reopened Coppinger team are doing. So we sat down with co-owner and founder Marc Bereen and executive chef of the group, Daniel Hannigan.

Coppinger Row, as it was first called, opened in 2009 and its perfect mix of refined Mediterranean cuisine, relaxed atmosphere and the carefully curated & created drinks menu was an instant success. Over the years, the two brothers and founders Marc & Conor Bereen had developed a large and loyal fanbase. It was as common to see touring A-List celebrities dining there as it was a local. From an Irish hospitality perspective, Coppinger Row was the first restaurant in Dublin's city center to place their cocktails front and centre of their menu and they have always strongly featured Irish spirits. And even with a Mediterranean flavour focused food menu, Irish provenance was always of great importance to their team and very much continues to this day.

In 2021, Coppinger Row sadly had to close but through sheer grit and determination, they reopened in July of this year. More floor space has been added, the kitchen and bar areas have been enlarged and a beautiful refit of all the interiors has been meticulously carried out.

Now called Coppinger - the Bereen brothers have hit the ground running with it since.

For the two Irish food & drink pairings they did with us, we featured Redbreast 12 year old, single pot still Irish whiskey.

The first dish is now actually the most popular main course on the new Coppinger menu - Andarl pork chop from Andarl farm in Mayo, nduja hispi cabbage, burnt apple & hazelnut. The pork is brined then barbecued and dressed in a Granny Smith apple & hazelnut dressing alongside charred hispi cabbage, which is topped with nduja honey and finished with a burnt apple puree. All the incredible layers of flavour, smoke and textures found on this plate were perfectly matched by the Rooibos cocktail, made with Redbreast 12, rooibos tea, vanilla syrup and bitters.

That was then followed by a whiskey and apple cruller with vanilla ice cream. It's comprised of a beautiful choux pastry deep fried and coated in a spiced sugar that sits on salted caramel and filled with a Redbreast 12 year old whiskey & apple compote, topped with vanilla ice cream and a lovely tuile. As a special add on in the restaurant, they offer a serving of Redbreast 12 for just €10 to savour alongside the dessert. This pairing is an absolute joy as the rich spice of the whiskey harmonizes so well with the sweetness and sharpness of the food. It also is a fantastic example of how a restaurant can so easily bring a beautiful Irish whiskey into their food offering.

Showcasing hospitality heroes within the Irish food & drink scene was something that we always wanted to do on the Beár Bia podcast. All around the 32 counties, there are huge amounts of bar, restaurant and hotel owners who are game changers when it comes to pairing our native culinary offerings. None more so than Seáneen Sullivan from L Mulligan Grocer in Stoneybatter, Dublin.

The famous pub and restaurant has been a firm favourite of locals and visitors alike since they started trading in 2010. And from that moment onwards, Irish food & beverages have been at the forefront of their identity. As exemplified by the first sentence on the homepage of their website, which reads, "We believe that Irish produce is special, and worth celebrating."

Seáneen and her team were one of the first operators in Ireland to not just host whiskey and beer dinners, but they were also one of the first to have written suggestions of Irish drinks pairings next to their food items on the menu.

We gave Seáneen free reign when it came to the Irish food & drink pairings for the episode. She decided to serve two of her favourite pairings that she has created over the years, the now legendary L Mulligan Scotch Egg made with and paired with two beers from Trouble Brewing, who were the first brewery that they worked with - Ambush and Deoch Na gCloch, the latter is a beer that's name is linked to Stoneybatter.
This was followed by the black pudding toastie made with McCarthy's, Inch House and De Roiste puddings, Ardsallagh Goats Cheese and Blackcurrant Jam, made by Seaneen and made with blackcurrants from her garden, paired with their Irish Kir Royale - Stillgarden Berrissimo and Dan Kelly's Cider - as an alternative and bonus pairing to this toastie, we also tasted Tipperary Whiskey, a limited edition that had been made for L. Mulligan Grocer.

As stand alone items, these dishes are sublime and as comforting as gastropub food can possibly get! But when paired with Seáneen's selected beverages, not only do they compliment each other so well but you experience a beautiful representation of Irish food & drinks enjoyed side by side.

For episode four, we are taking a trip to Dublin's Liberties and making our way to Roe & Co Irish Whiskey Distillery. Their 2024 Summer Garden Series is in full swing. Now in its fifth year, it sees the front outdoor space of the James's Street distillery turned into a dining area with a rotating set of guest chefs and restaurants who each create a bespoke menu to pair with Roe & Co whiskey and cocktails.

From August 1st until the 24th, The Salt Project will be the resident restaurant. Founded by Kildare-based Chef, Caomhán de Bri takes a fresh new approach to street food with his nomadic food trailer that has travelled coast to coast popping up in scenic locations all over Ireland. Caomhán has worked in professional kitchens for over a decade, including a year in London in Gordon Ramsay’s Michelin-starred restaurant, Maze. Having grown up with a huge appreciation and respect for food, passed down to him by his parents, Caomhán’s menus have always had a strong focus on food provenance. Visitors to The Salt Project can expect a "Medieval inspired Modern Dublin" menu, offering a series of Blaisíní (small bites) dishes that have been specially designed to showcase locally grown and artisan ingredients from small-scale producers specific to each region

Colin Martin, Operations Manager with Roe & Co, joined us and brought with him a cocktail made with Stillgarden Glas 55, black salt, black lime, and black cumin, with clarified lime and vermouth finished with pickle juice and a spritz of fresh lime.
This was paired with Caomhán's "Fishamble Street" starter made with Lambay Island Crab, Dublin Bay Prawns, Irish Sea Lemon Sole Tempura and a Sea Veg Dip. The fresh, hyper-local seafood worked a charm when enjoyed alongside the deep citrus notes of the cocktail.

This was followed by a Ballymakenny Farm potato flatbread with caramelised Toons Bridge cultured butter veg, Mc Nally’s Organic Farm August pickled, fresh & grilled vegetable bounty, Salt Project garum and foraged flowers. Colin paired this amazing medley of Irish produce with a simple neat serving of Roe & Co Single Malt Solera, a sumptuous whiskey filled with complex layers of hazelnut and orchard fruits that harmonized wonderfully with the food.

The curator of the Summer Series, Ali Dunworth sat in for the recording and shared with us her inspiration for how she so deftly nurtures an incredible community of Irish food talents for Roe & Co. It is an excellent body of work that not only highlights the great chefs but how well their dishes can be enjoyed with the versatility of Irish whiskey.

This is another cracker of an episode, we hope you enjoy listening and make sure and subscribe for more!

Oisin & Dee

For episode three, we shifted our focus to Big Grill, Europe's largest BBQ and food festival, which takes place in Herbert Park, Dublin on August 22nd - 25th. We wanted to engage with one of their Irish drinks partners and pair their drinks with dishes from participating festival restaurants.

Dingle Distillery were keen to collaborate and their Dingle Gin became the star of the show! It is distilled, bottled and packaged on-site in Dingle, Kerry. Among its many botanicals, you will find local wild ingredients such as rowanberry, fuchsia and myrtle. All of which give this multiple award-winning gin an incredible balance of spice, citrus and floral notes with tastes and textures straight from The Kingdom itself.

Two different Dingle Gin cocktails that will be served at Big Grill Festival were selected for the pairing:

• "Gin & Juice" made with Dingle Gin, Pineapple, Lime, Sugar Syrup & Soda Water.
• "Watermelon Sugar High" made with Dingle Gin, Watermelon, Raspberry, Lime & Soda.

Of the huge selection of guest restaurants and chefs appearing at Big Grill, we worked with two to create food pairings to accompany the Dingle Gin cocktails for the podcast: Hang Dai, the Chinese & Asian restaurant on Camden St, Dublin 2, and Bahay, the Filipino food truck.

Hang Dai's head chef Thiago Guerra Pereira turned his attention to the wonderful Skeaghanore duck from West Cork. It was cooked over an open fire and made into a bao with some house-made hoisin sauce and pickles. Enjoyed alongside the Gin & Juice cocktail, the richness of the duck is balanced beautifully by the pineapple sweetness and spice of the gin.

Alex O’Neill of Bahay, looked towards the incredible bounty of MacNally's Farm in north Dublin. She took some of their seasonal vegetables and grilled them over fire with peaches, serving it all up with Filipino wild rice to make a salad that will be sold as a main and a side dish at Big Grill. This was paired with the Watermelon Sugar High cocktail, which amplified the freshness and smoky character of the salad.

These exact pairings will be available at Big Grill and we encourage all festival attendees to try them, at least once! For as we always say on the Beár Bia podcast, things that grow together, go together.

Enjoy listening and don't forget to subscribe to our podcast!
Dee & Oisin

In this special episode, supported by Bord Bia, we ventured to Bloom in the Park on the June bank holiday weekend, where we curated three pairings from the huge array of Irish food and drink producers that were present for the event.

We were joined by each producer pairing as follows:

• Kinsale Mead Co. and Burren Smokehouse
• Micíl Cream Liqueur and Áine's Chocolates
• Cooleeney Farmhouse Cheese with Ballykilcavan Craft Beer

Co-hosted as always by Oisín Davis and Dee Laffan.

We hope you enjoy listening!

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Our first episode focuses on the garden county as we pair two different Wicklow drinks with two different Wicklow foods. We picked up some amazing Ridgeway wagyu beef, cooked and served by Barry Walllace of Dash Burger, and paired with Wicklow Wolf Brewery's Solstice Tropical Sour.
The other pairing featured Ballyhubbock Farm's sheep's milk halloumi cheese alongside a cocktail made with raspberry wine from Wicklow Way Wines and Powerscourt Distillery's Fercullen Falls whiskey.

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