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Michael Cowman

@thecowmanshow

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Irish Whiskey/Spirits/Memes ✨🥃
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Co-Founder @redactedbottlers_
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Joint Top Dog @southeastwhiskeyfest
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Welfare Wednesdays. Get Fucked Fridays. And one of Dublin's most notorious nightclubs. 🍻

If you went out in Dublin during the 1990s or 2000s, there's a good chance you heard of The Blacker in Coolock.

Officially known as the Blacker, it became legendary for its cheap drink promotions, colourful characters and nights that Dubliners are still talking about decades later.

It certainly wasn't glamorous, but it was unforgettable.

And depending on who you ask, it was either the best nightclub in Dublin or somewhere you wouldn't be caught dead.

Did you ever have a night in The Blacker? We'd love to hear the stories. 👀

This post was inspired by a recent post from the fantastic @dublinbypub account, an absolute must follow.

#TheBlacker #Coolock #DublinHistory #DublinNightlife #IrishPubs OldDublin DublinNostalgia taken in Coolock by @thecowmanshow

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8 days ago

What makes a traveller really a traveller?

Three miles, a straight face, and a convincing story.

That was once enough to turn a Sunday pint from illegal into perfectly legitimate.

The bona fide traveller rule might be one of the greatest loopholes in Irish pub history.

#IrishPubs #IrishHistory #PubCulture #ireland taken in Dublin, Ireland by @thecowmanshow

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a month ago

Before dating apps, there was Tramco. 🪩

A Rathmines institution, questionable decisions, legendary nights and probably a few romances that were best left on the dancefloor.

For an entire generation of Dubliners, Tramco wasn't just a nightclub. It was a rite of passage.

And if those walls could talk, they'd probably need a solicitor.

Were you a Tramco regular, or have you a story that's safe enough to tell in the comments? 👀

#Tramco #DublinNightlife #Rathmines #IrishNightlife #DublinHistory by @thecowmanshow

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5 days ago

An Irish pub with its own crèche. Yes, really. 🍺👶

Back in 1996, Grainger's in Baldoyle, Dublin, opened what was reportedly Ireland's first pub crèche.

For just £1 an hour, parents could leave their children in supervised care while they enjoyed a few quiet pints.

The idea was so unusual that RTÉ sent a reporter out to investigate, and the interviews with the children were absolutely priceless.

The pub later became The White House and is now known as Fitzpatrick's Baldoyle.

The crèche is long gone, but the pub is still family-friendly.

Would a pub crèche work in Ireland today, or was this peak 1990s Ireland? 😂

#IrishPubs #Baldoyle #DublinHistory #IrishPubHistory #IrishHistory DublinNostalgia 90sIreland taken in Baldoyle by @thecowmanshow

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7 days ago

Yes, Lidl actually opened a pub. 🍺

After years of trying to secure an off-licence in Dundonald, Lidl eventually took a very different route.

They opened The Middle Ale, a proper 60-seat pub attached to the supermarket.

There was a court battle, another pub licence had to be surrendered, and then on opening night the police were called after an altercation.

All perfectly normal supermarket behaviour.

And yes, the name really is a play on the Middle Aisle.

#IrishPubs #PubHistory #TheMiddleAle #Lidl #Dundonald Ireland by @thecowmanshow

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11 days ago

You've probably walked past this Dublin pub hundreds of times without knowing its history. 🍺

@meaghersoconnellbridge has seen almost 200 years of Dublin history.

From a mention in James Joyce's Ulysses, to destruction during the 1916 Rising, the murder of a barman during the Civil War, and even a stint as a strip club.

The pub at 3 Eden Quay has certainly lived a few lives.

Today, it's back to being a traditional Dublin pub, but its walls have some extraordinary stories to tell.

What's another Dublin pub with a history more people should know about?

#DublinPubs #Meaghers #IrishPubHistory #DublinHistory #IrishHistory HiddenDublin IrishPubs taken in O'Connell Bridge by @thecowmanshow

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9 days ago

Bunclody, 1798.

A publican, an old rebel, the yeomen… and a secret door at the back of a pub.

Ireland’s National Folklore Collection preserves an incredible story about Bunclody publican Paddy Hickey, who supposedly risked everything to help an elderly man escape.

It’s a reminder that the Irish pub wasn’t always just somewhere to get a drink.

Sometimes, it was a refuge.

A remarkable piece of folklore from my hometown that I’d somehow never heard before.

#Bunclody #Wexford #1798Rebellion #IrishHistory #IrishPubs PubHistory WexfordHistory by @thecowmanshow

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14 days ago

Can you tell the difference between Rockshore and a pint of Water? It's harder than you'd think. taken in Dublin, Ireland by @thecowmanshow

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19 days ago

South Africa, you can keep the World Cups. We’re claiming the shebeen. 🇮🇪🤝🇿🇦

One of the most famous words in South African drinking culture comes from the Irish “síbín” an illicit or unlicensed drinking house.

By at least 1873, South African newspapers were already talking about “Irish shebeens”.

From illicit Irish drinking houses to an institution of South African culture, not a bad journey for one little word.

#Shebeen #SouthAfrica #Ireland #IrishHistory #PubHistory IrishPubs SouthAfricanHistory

I'm sure the comment section will be totally normal and unproblematic. taken in South Africa by @thecowmanshow

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18 days ago

One of the smallest distilleries in Ireland, and definitely one of the most characterful.

Baoilleach Distillery in Donegal started distilling around 2019 and became the first distillery to mash grain in the county in roughly 180 years.

Production is tiny, the whiskey is genuinely local, and their Grán na hÁite project takes grain-to-glass very literally.

Also buried under the driveway? A Cork coat of arms, donated by supporters, blessed in Cork and placed there to ward off evil.

Donegal whiskey, protected by Cork. by @thecowmanshow

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17 days ago

There was a time in the North of Ireland when where you drank could say almost as much about your religion as where you worshipped.

There was no legal divide between Catholic and Protestant pubs — but neighbourhood, clientele, sport, flags and politics could make the identity of a bar very clear.

Mixed pubs existed too, which is what makes the history more complicated than a simple two-sided divide.

I'm glad that's over......

#NorthernIreland #IrishPubs #PubCulture #IrishHistory by @thecowmanshow

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23 days ago

Ireland’s Official Pints Matrix, revised 😉

Hopefully we can bring the country back together after the great divide of the pints matrix last week! 😅

Is everything in position this time? Does this mean Beamish is Irelands greatest pint? I’m sure you’ll let us know in the comments. 🍻

#PintMatrix #Pint #Beamish taken in The Abbey Tavern Howth by @thecowmanshow

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19 days ago