“So what’s this about? I’m honestly bemused. If you don’t like a beer, don’t f**king drink it. What on earth gives this person the motivation to go to the effort of getting this [sticker] printed, going down to the shops and putting this on a basket that I packed by hand and sent out into the world?
…I’d like the person who is doing this this to know that they’ve properly pissed off 7 talented homebrewers and me – as an effort to hurt the livelihood of people who learned their craft over years in their kitchens out of crippling obsession and passion, and it is the most lousy thing I can think of…”
Alex Lawes, Head Brewer, Rye River Brewing Company, Kildare-based makers of McGargles.
Recent Attacks On McGargles (Beoir.org)
Thanks Bill
Some people might think you’re not the real deal because of your background in the mainstream http://webcontent.ie/assets/2015/01/Rye-River-Brewing-Company-AIB-final.docx
Do they make imaginary beer?
Some people will think you’re a gobpoo for posting links to word docs.
Beoir say they are the real deal. So what if they worked in big breweries before this? Are they not ‘real’ unless their beer started out in a shed in the back garden?
Well if they do, they’re tools
Are you the one doing the stickers?
So what if they have a background in mainstream brewing. They’ve decided to do something a little different and fair play to them. Hope it works out for them.
+1
Ive never heard of McGargles until now, so it’s actually piqued my curiosity as to what its like. Good Job.
some people have nothing better to be doing. Have yo CCTV where you can see who is doing it, that way next time they come into the shop ask them if they would like to try a free sample and when they say yes, (which they will as they are irish), tell them to GO F**K themselves? something I’d do…. Or i’d stick a “D*CK HEAD” sticker on his back as he/she leaves the shop!!
Best of luck and well done in doing something with your life and trying to make things better for yourself.
smells of stunt
Smells of disgruntled ex employee or competitor. Kinda hoppy.
Fake controversy viral marketing. Classy.
Bet you said the same about the woman on facebook with the black eye as well
your ma on the game?
Lots of room for all booze in my fridge
(I love the nail + wooden handle wedge bottle opener & the deck of cards they supply with their packaging. Nice touch!)
Tried it, was not a fan (like mop water after bleaching the floor)
Whoever did this though, beyond ugly .
Ask the store for CCTV
McGargles beer didn’t impress me. Also, something about the name and packaging makes me think they are trying too hard.
That said, after reading their post to Beoir, the passion does come across really well.
Yeah, snap Sheila. Here’s a follow up further down the beoir page:
—
Hi pdb,
Cheers for your input and there’s no offence taken.
I’ve addressed the issue of the branding above and it’s been discussed a-lot. I brew the beer however so we can go into that.
So far my contribution to beers in the Rye River portfolio have been a Berliner Weisse, a Brown Ale and a Double IPA at the Alltech festival just February gone.
They ‘fared better’ according to you and I’ll take it as a compliment.
I honestly think a brewery that stops trying to improve their beer is one that should pack it in. Except Drie Fonteinen.
In the three months since I’ve taken charge we have –
Moved the all our range to liquid house yeast
Commissioned a yeast propagation plant
Extended our malt supply to focus on traditionally floor malted barley
Secured our next three years of hop supply
Reduced our filtration on all products
Eliminated pasteurisation from all products
Commissioned our own bottling line
Put our Q&A laboratory in place along with one full time microbiologist
Adjusted water profiles and grists on all McGargles beers
Developed two new products due to release this month.
No other craft brewery in Ireland puts this level of investment into the quality of their beers and a lot has gone on since a few heads dismissed the beers last year.
I’d hope you get a chance to try the new IPA I’ve thrown into the mix at the RDS this month too and we can hopefully win you over to the beer. Your American friends might like it too.
Cheers,
Alex.
I appreciate the work you guys put in. I have to say, I like a wide variety of beers and ales and yours doesn’t do it for me. What is it you’re aiming for?
I hope you’re able to get your employees down to more sustainable working hours in the future, Alex.
Make the charge or withdraw.
I like this beer.
Sticker same font as the label, I smell a rat
I’m sure the stickerer can access the same font.
It’s hardly difficult to copy a font.
Yeah I thought the same. Disgruntled people generally don’t go to all the trouble of searching for, purchasing and then selecting the same typeface in the same point size.
unless of course they’re making fake cease and desist letters to send to a guy in Waterford
Duuz-oooon-alloo-oh-arrrle-hiss-tuff?
*Removes open topped phalli like bottle from mouth*
Does one swallow or gargle this stuff?
You have been doing it wrong all these years honey bunny
I’ll pass on the lessons Fluffy :)
The copy of the brand on the sticker is a little too perfect, it’s either a stunt or someone really, really has an axe to grind.
An unemployed graphic designer? With a crippling beer snobbery and penchant for passive aggression?
Good luck finding one of those mate.
If you’re looking for one you’ll find me in Wetherspoons.
Oh wait, beer snobbery. Never mind.
PAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
….And it was from this small incident that the Great Hipster Civil War began, setting bearded brother against bearded brother in nations around the globe.
Don’t think many hipsters would drink something called ‘McGargles’
Its craft beer, its like catnip to hipsters. Hipnip?
I know the McGargles and they are good people
There’s only 1 of them. Put down that fine malty beverage.
I quite liked the beer but the labelling/branding is a bit too busy!
A marketing stunt? Possibly… If they thought ‘McGargles’ was a good name they might well think a stunt like this is a good idea.
I like Hilden’s Belfast Blonde at the moment. That will change. I’ll keep ye posted. I’d still like them without my beard.
Try Hilden’s Buck’s Head. Have it in Dunnes at the moment.
I don’t really like this beer or its branding but there’s a lot worse out there.
Unless this is a desperate attention-seeking stunt
Cecil the Lion?
Would he have access to the font?
He was a good cat
Cousin was he? Sorry for your loss
And a cool cat
Duh, no McGargles have it in a secret vault
i quite like the bear. its pretty sad that someone would go to all that trouble. given the effort and the pointed language i would guess ex employee. re the logo it is fairly easy to copy the logo from a website and print the stickers from a standard home computer and the language is far too aggressive so it is unlikely to be a stunt. Hopefully CCTV will help the Gardaí get them for vandalism.
We don’t care what homosexual subset you go for. What do you think of the drink?
You like bears.
Maybe it’s the stupid name. It’s cheap.
Guinness.
The alpha and omega.
Guinness – a solid, 3 out of 5, but hideously over-rated in this country because it had nothing to compete with for years beyond Bud Ice and Coors Light and other nonsense. There’s far better than Guinness available now. Keep your beer money local rather than giving it to Diagio.
+1
There really isn’t anything to beat a pint of guinness, in draught form anyway. Plenty of better bottled stout alright.
Wrong on all counts. Guinness as a drink should be separated from Diageo, the baby eating monsters.
it is simply the best beer ever conceived. Any other opinion is just hipster wibble.
“a solid, 3 out of 5″
Hmm. Not a bad ratio if you’re sticking with it all night.
Guiness was like mother’s milk when it was warmer, but it was an inconsistent product, the quality would deteriorate with the distance from barrel to tap and even in the course of an evening as the bar heated up with the crowd. And anywhere off the island it was just awful.
So then they changed the recipe and introduced ‘cold flow’ and whatnot to provide a consistent product wherever you went.
We served Guinness pint bottles from the shelf in Tigh Neachtains Galway when I worked there in 92/93, not sure they still do…. anyway, I was told of pre-cool Guinness… in the 50s/60s at about 4.30pm the bar man would line up 10 or 15 pints of Guinness along the counter. Drawn from a barrel under it, room temp, they’d be sitting there for five minutes or more before the guys came off their shift down the road at the Claddagh Minerals bottling plant,
Guinness accounted for between 50% to 60% of all till receipts every night in that place when there.
Under-the-counter barrels…
*Homer Simpson drooling sounds
Unfortunately these were in the unfancy pubs before unfancy was cool : (
I like the pint bottle of stout at room temp.
Yes, and no.
A good Guinness is a treat that cannot be matched.
And I did the Murphy while in Cork – more cream, less taste.
For beer-drinkers wanting that extra hop, wheat and fruity tastes and maybe wanting to screw the big conglomerates…fine. Yizz are keeping the small brewers going.
The fact that Diagio are going all craft-beer-y with their advertising is amusing – obviously losing market share.
It must be divine, since it can change the colour of my poo.
There are loads of reasons why the beer nerds think they’re not “craft” enough but to go to this level of c***iness is just sad.
I hate beer . I don’t care.
Have a whisky, JT. It’s Friday after all.
Bet it was a Diageo rep.
Smells like someone scooped it out if a fupping ditch.
Wow! What a line! Where might you have plucked that from!?!
^_^ Meta
Are Rye Water brewing Lidl’s “Irish Craft Beer”?
Their bottles mention a different company in Kilcock, but how many breweries might there be in this small town?
I can see why some people in the trade might dislike competitors who deal with the discounters. There’s no need for such vandalism though. Why not just spell it out and spread the word?