Headed up by owners Rick LeVert and Libby Carton, Kinnegar Brewing makes a range of finely crafted, all-natural farmhouse beers.
Named after Kinnegar Beach near Rathmullan in County Donegal, many of their beers are all similarly named after the local landscape.
Kinnegar Brewing began their small range of farmhouse beers on a nano rather than a micro scale, producing only 120 litres a week, week but, after an expansion in 2013, it progressed to a 10 hectolitre brewhouse with a capacity of 4000L per week. The addition of further fermentation tanks in 2015 allowed a further doubling of capacity. The increased production led them to invest in a semi-automatic bottling system - which also meant it was easier to find their beers in outlets across Ireland - and then to move production from Rathmullan to to Letterkenny.
Limeburner Pale Ale, Devil’s Backbone Amber Ale, Scraggy Bay India Pale Ale and Rustbucket Rye Ale were the four originals developed in the pilot brewery. Yannaroddy porter came a little later, followed by Otway pale ale and Crossroads American-style IPA. There are now seven beers in the core range and this is likely to increase again.
Look out for them especially in local outlets around Co. Donegal, where they are now widely available. Rathmullan House Hotel, Rathmullan; The Mill, Dunfanaghy; and The Red Door and Kealy’s on the Inishowen Peninsula were among the first to showcase them, and Belles Kitchen in Rathmullan, The Counter in Letterkenny and the Olde Glen Bar near Carrigart are also great Kinnegar supporters. They also feature at tasting events in Donegal and beyond - and, increasingly, in outlets around Ireland.