The Wicklow Wolf brewery doesn’t go in for mystery. They lay all their cards on the table (or in this case, bottle): ‘Wicklow, because that’s where we opened our brewhouse. Wolf, because the last one in Ireland lived around here, and because the hops we plant on our own hop farm takes its name – humulus lupulus – from that wild and proud creature.’
Owners Quincey Fennelly and Simon Lynch launched the brewery in 2014, with brewer Peter Reynier from Colorado, a US craft beer hub, at the helm. Quincey has a background in the drinks industry, while Simon is a horticulturist who trained in Dublin’s Botanic Gardens. What all three share, unsurprisingly, is a love of good craft beer.
There’s a strong locavore ethos at the foundation of the brewery, complete with 10 acres of hops that they’ve planted in Roundwood. These were first used in their Fresh Hopped 2014 All Irish Ingredient Blonde Ale, with Irish malt sourced from the Malting Company of Ireland.
They produce a range of seven regular beers and a similar number of speciality of seasonal brews, and brewery tours are offered, by arrangement.
With more people employed at the brewery and the farm - and plans to move to larger premises in Wicklow - this brewery is one to watch.
