Now ye're talking - to a country barman

I'm a country barman, AMA · 20-07-2018 7:32pm

sligojoek wrote: »

Hi OP.

Do you consider barwork easier these days than years ago? I did it for years from the early 80s till the mid 90s. There was always a chancer on the go.

I fine it much easier now as its not as busy as it used to be. In the 90s the pubs would be packed for the Eurovision. Thats not the case anymore.

Back in the 80s and the early 90s people would go to their local and have plush carpets, Huge tvs, Decent speakers and bar staff in shirts and ties as well as lounge boys/girls collecting glasses. Thats all gone now. Most people have bigger tvs and sound sytems now. The glamour of the local bar is gone.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 20-07-2018 7:33pm

Yester wrote: »

Is a baby soda water just sparkling water trying to be classy and expensive?

More or less yes. Soda water has added minerals that I do not think are noticeable.

Ygritte · 20-07-2018 8:04pm

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

We had a famous guy in on his way to Dingle. I can't think of his name though. But he spend a lot of time in Dingle and was in a move with Will Ferrel where they are step brothers. No one batted an eyelid. Now if the gooch had came in it would be a different story.

John C Reilly? He loves Ireland and especially Kerry since he filmed The Lobster there!

Do you get propositioned regularly since you claim to be the biggest roide in the village? How do you deal with the older randy ladies?

slavetothegrind · 20-07-2018 8:38pm

Do you watch for a guiness to get to 1/4 full and nod to stick on another?
A lost art in most bars....

John_Rambo · 20-07-2018 9:02pm

I have a question. It's been mentioned already and I may have missed they answer, sorry if so... but...

Do you know something nobody else knows? Do you share a dark secret. Surely... as a sober barman in a drinking pub, you've seen things that have raised your eyebrow? An affair, an illicit getting together that only you'd have noticed or seen?

I've been put in a position where I've seen two people intimately together that are both "happily" married with kids. I'll be doing or saying nothing!!

I'm a country barman, AMA · 20-07-2018 9:17pm

Ygritte wrote: »

John C Reilly? He loves Ireland and especially Kerry since he filmed The Lobster there!

Do you get propositioned regularly since you claim to be the biggest roide in the village? How do you deal with the older randy ladies?

Only 1 young one who used to. The rest would be happily married. It happens a lot more it city bars.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 20-07-2018 9:19pm

slavetothegrind wrote: »

Do you watch for a guiness to get to 1/4 full and nod to stick on another?
A lost art in most bars....

It still happens in Country pubs. I'd say when a lad turns 40ish he starts to give the nod as well.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 20-07-2018 9:21pm

John_Rambo wrote: »

I have a question. It's been mentioned already and I may have missed they answer, sorry if so... but...

Do you know something nobody else knows? Do you share a dark secret. Surely... as a sober barman in a drinking pub, you've seen things that have raised your eyebrow? An affair, an illicit getting together that only you'd have noticed or seen?

I've been put in a position where I've seen two people intimately together that are both "happily" married with kids. I'll be doing or saying nothing!!

We always know who is knocking who lol. Doesn't happen where I work now but I have seeing it in the past. They think they are discrete but it's fairly obvious to a sober person.

In a previous bar I knew a happily married man that was sleeping with a gay friend of mine

I'm a country barman, AMA · 20-07-2018 9:23pm

acai berry wrote: »

Do you have a traditional musician as a regular, who as the night wears on, will do the honours with a tune or two?

Nope we do have musicians come in every few weeks but they just sit in a corner and play their own tunes.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 20-07-2018 9:26pm

Corvo wrote: »

My mother is from an area like where you describe, and something I noticed over the years in the two very isolated and rural pubs is that a lot of the customer base die off, with no younger people replacing their trade, or at least not to the same level.

Is this a danger to the pub you work in - as the years go on would staying in business become more difficult as the hardcore drinkers go?

There are few young people that drink in the bar. Luckily we have a lot of middle aged people and older men to hold us over while we wait for that generation to settle down with a family and go to their local instead of heading to bigger towns and drinking at home.

There are other bars that have closed because they have not had the younger generation calling to the bar and the older generation dying off. There are pubs in Kerry that are relying on the older generation and when they die off the bar will close.

slavetothegrind · 20-07-2018 9:29pm

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

It still happens in Country pubs. I'd say when a lad turns 40ish he starts to give the nod as well.

:eek:outed so i am!

:):)

I'm a country barman, AMA · 20-07-2018 9:30pm

notobtuse wrote: »

About 15 years ago I became allergic to beer and beer based coolers. I say it’s proof there is a god and he’s got a wicked sense of humor. I’ve tried all sorts of beers, even gluten-free beers, to no avail. But I’ve found I can drink two pints of Guinness on tap before my throat swells shut. But it’s not common to find Guinness on tap in bars here in the states. Any thoughts on why Guinness from the tap (can't drink the bottled Guinness) takes longer to try and kill me than other beers?

I know Guinness in the states uses a different gas mixture. It may be the gas that is causing you problems.its 25% co2 and 75% nitrogen in Ireland.

It's a different Gas mixture again in the bottles

the_syco · 20-07-2018 10:11pm

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

There are other bars that have closed because they have not had the younger generation calling to the bar and the older generation dying off. There are pubs in Kerry that are relying on the older generation and when they die off the bar will close.

Yup. See that happening in Scart. Do you think that the pubs which are multi-functional, like yours, will last longer?

893bet · 21-07-2018 9:22am

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

The bar in Limerick was a bit rought and I would have seeing a lot of fights. I never intervened in fights, I just let them at it. Most times the family would break it up anyway.

There was an auld lad that drank in the bar. He died a few years back. He would get viagra on the medical card and sell them in the pub.

THere was another alcoholic he would look at the paper for horse races with a low number of horses. He would then to to 4 to 5 different bars and give a different tip in each bar. He would call to the bar that he gave the tip for the winner to and ask for a pint for giving the tip. It worked for a short time but I thought it was genius.

THere was a lot of lads barred from TOp Shelf in Limerick as they went mad from it. THe biggest nuisance was try to spot there friends calling to the bar to get them a small one. If we missed it then chances were there would be an argument.

I think I worked in the same pub in limerick......0r one of the pubs that guy went to..........yer man that used to give the tips.........was be a “travelling” sort? Well known and liked and used do paintings aswell?

I'm a country barman, AMA · 21-07-2018 1:56pm

JimboJones99 wrote: »

How many hours a week do you work?

40 to 50,

I'm a country barman, AMA · 21-07-2018 2:25pm

MurraySam wrote: »

What do you think of the Healy Rae situation? Do you think driving laws should be as strict in the country (your opniion as a barman)

Someone else asked about the Healy Raes and do I think they are cute hoors or gombeens?. I dont think they are either. The Healy Raes dont care what anyone outside of Kerry thinks of them. Their vote is meaningless to them. What they do care about is what the Kerry constituent think of them.

They didnt wake up one morning and decide that they should push for more lenient drink driving laws. They are representing the people of Kerry and what the majority want. Again we are not talking about the people who get behind the wheel of a car drunk, or the people that get in to a car after drinking when they could have got a bus or taxi, Only the people who cannot use public transport and have a low alcohol to blood ratio. It would have being the same ratios that were legal a few years back.

Its the same with learner drivers. The laws will be stricter soon and the vast majority of people agree with that. What a lot of people dont know is Kerry has one of the longest waiting periods for a driving test. In many cases in cant be up to 27 weeks. Its fine bringing in new laws for L drivers but they should reduce the waiting time to take a test.

If you young lad/lady is offered a job and it involves them driving to and from work they are not going to turn in down because there are a L driver. They will take a chance.
If the lad/lady refused the job because of this, Social Welfare would cut their payment. or they would be bashed on forums for not working and called lazy and classed as abusing the system.

When I was working in the city I was completely against drink driving and thought anyone caught should be off the road for a lot longer than they are now.

After moving to a rural location my views have changed a bit. Obviously anyone that gets behind the wheel of a car drunk needs to be put off the road for a long time. But I do feel for the people that are isolated and would have had a small amount of drinks over a few hours and drove home, Many of these people would have had that routine for the last 40/50 years.

I think the new laws that are coming in will have a huge effect. At the moment if someone has 51mg to 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood they are giving a fine and are not put off the road. When the new laws come in they will be disqualified.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 21-07-2018 2:29pm

893bet wrote: »

I think I worked in the same pub in limerick......0r one of the pubs that guy went to..........yer man that used to give the tips.........was be a “travelling” sort? Well known and liked and used do paintings aswell?

Thats the man, A candlelight painter. He died a few years back from cancer. He really was a character. Il send you a PM.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 21-07-2018 2:30pm

Ygritte wrote: »

John C Reilly? He loves Ireland and especially Kerry since he filmed The Lobster there!

Do you get propositioned regularly since you claim to be the biggest roide in the village? How do you deal with the older randy ladies?

Thats the guy. A nice man he left a fiver tip. No one bothered him and just left him off. We chatted about music and Dingle.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 21-07-2018 2:35pm

the_syco wrote: »

Yup. See that happening in Scart. Do you think that the pubs which are multi-functional, like yours, will last longer?

Its hard to tell, The majority of payments now are Children's Allowance or pensions. The people that collect children's allowance dont really call to the bar and the pensioners literally are dying out.

A lot of the other payments are paid directly in to the bank. The biggest challenge in a local bar is waiting for the younger generation to settle down with a family and drink local before the older generation die off. Its the middle aged drinkers that keep the bar going while we wait for this to happen.

BarryD2 · 21-07-2018 2:38pm

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

After moving to a rural location my views have changed a bit. Obviously anyone that gets behind the wheel of a car drunk needs to be put off the road for a long time. But I do feel for the people that are isolated and would have had a small amount of drinks over a few hours and drove home, Many of these people would have had that routine for the last 40/50 years.

I think the new laws that are coming in will have a huge effect. At the moment if someone has 51mg to 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood they are giving a fine and are not put off the road. When the new laws come in they will be disqualified.

I agree and the main affect of this new legislation is to further disadvantage rural people who are basically law abiding. It will have no affect on the lads who down several pints and then jump behind the wheel of a car that often has no insurance or tax to boot. These lads couldn't give a hoot.

This is all about the RSA and being seen to 'improve' year on year regardless of much they f*ck up ordinary law abiding citizens.

I used to enjoy a couple of pints in the local, just two and the drive back the few miles on normally deserted rural roads. Not any more though, can't afford the off chance of losing the licence etc.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 21-07-2018 2:38pm

Ygritte wrote: »

Do you get propositioned regularly since you claim to be the biggest roide in the village? How do you deal with the older randy ladies?

Nope Im hitting my 40s now

. Still think im the biggest roide, that may be a mid life crisis in the making lol

I'm a country barman, AMA · 21-07-2018 2:41pm

McCrack wrote: »

I had understood it to be the having the shortest line from the keg to the tap

For example Fallons in Dublin 8 have their Guinness kegs right under the bar and I can certainly recommend a pint there

Thats a grey area, Some people will say a short draw with the keg behind the bar is the way to go, Others will say that the keg is not being stored in a cold room and makes the pint worse.

There are bars with short draws and bad pints and long draws and perfect pints.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 21-07-2018 2:52pm

BarryD2 wrote: »

I agree and the main affect of this new legislation is to further disadvantage rural people who are basically law abiding. It will have no affect on the lads who down several pints and then jump behind the wheel of a car that often has no insurance or tax to boot. These lads couldn't give a hoot.

This is all about the RSA and being seen to 'improve' year on year regardless of much they f*ck up ordinary law abiding citizens.

I used to enjoy a couple of pints in the local, just two and the drive back the few miles on normally deserted rural roads. Not any more though, can't afford the off chance of losing the licence etc.

I 100% agree with what you said, I know some media portray the Kerry people as raging alcoholics that want to get behind the wheel locked and drive home. Thats simply not the case. The only people who condone that behavior is the people that get behind the wheel drunk.

McCrack · 21-07-2018 7:32pm

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

Thats a grey area, Some people will say a short draw with the keg behind the bar is the way to go, Others will say that the keg is not being stored in a cold room and makes the pint worse.

There are bars with short draws and bad pints and long draws and perfect pints.

And the 119 seconds..do you subscribe to that recommendation? I know a barman that refuses to be rushed, he will pour at 45 degrees and wait 2 min

Again its a bloody nice pint!

Blazer · 21-07-2018 9:55pm

One of the nicest pints of guinness I ever had was at the cert training facility in Limerick.
The trainer had just plugged in a keg, it had a draw of about 4 feet and my god it was unbelievable.

slavetothegrind · 21-07-2018 10:03pm

in my limited experience a clean glass is a huge thing. Excess detergent will poison the pint.
I think also temperature at point of delivery is critical.

MMMMMM guinness!!!!!

Blazer · 21-07-2018 10:03pm

slavetothegrind wrote: »

in my limited experience a clean glass is a huge thing. Excess detergent will poison the pint.
I think also temperature at point of delivery is critical.

MMMMMM guinness!!!!!

I know damn...I'm here in work and damnit I want a cold point of guinness.

Reputable Rog · 21-07-2018 10:27pm

I think Guinness is served far too cold these days. Some pubs I go into I can't taste a thing.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 1:21am

McCrack wrote: »

And the 119 seconds..do you subscribe to that recommendation? I know a barman that refuses to be rushed, he will pour at 45 degrees and wait 2 min

Again its a bloody nice pint!

I dont time it to be honest. I just know by looking. When there is a lot of pints being pulled it settles a bit quicker.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 1:22am

Reputable Rog wrote: »

I think Guinness is served far too cold these days. Some pubs I go into I can't taste a thing.

DO you remember the extra cold they brought in a few years back. It never really took off.

AfterLife · 22-07-2018 1:30am

Surely the whole waiting for your Guinness for two minutes is all aesthetics, pomp and ceremony. Do you think in a blind taste test you can tell the difference to a single poured pint?

I will be in Kerry in 3 weeks to take up this challenge if you're game.

allthedoyles · 22-07-2018 1:48am

How often do Guinness and other brewers call to check the pints you pour ?

clio_16v · 22-07-2018 1:48am

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

DO you remember the extra cold they brought in a few years back. It never really took off.

I had a group of big Guinness drinkers who said Guinness Extra Cold was muck. They wanted their Guinness glasses in the fridge though. Made no sense

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 1:52am

allthedoyles wrote: »

How often do Guinness and other brewers call to check the pints you pour ?

It would be rare, They used to do it a lot years ago.

clio_16v · 22-07-2018 1:52am

slavetothegrind wrote: »

in my limited experience a clean glass is a huge thing. Excess detergent will poison the pint.
I think also temperature at point of delivery is critical.

MMMMMM guinness!!!!!

People REALLY underestimate how important a clean glass is. Or they never clean out the glasswasher. Or empty the water out of it.
Worked in a pub before where staff rarely emptied the water and hadnt cleaned the glasswasher in months. I smashed most of the glasses and ordered new ones.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 1:54am

AfterLife wrote: »

Surely the whole waiting for your Guinness for two minutes is all aesthetics, pomp and ceremony. Do you think in a blind taste test you can tell the difference to a single poured pint?

I will be in Kerry in 3 weeks to take up this challenge if you're game.

Im not a guinness drinker so I wouldnt know. But apparently its a marketing scam.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 1:55am

clio_16v wrote: »

People REALLY underestimate how important a clean glass is. Or they never clean out the glasswasher. Or empty the water out of it.
Worked in a pub before where staff rarely emptied the water and hadnt cleaned the glasswasher in months. I smashed most of the glasses and ordered new ones.

Thats just vile lol.

clio_16v · 22-07-2018 1:56am

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

Thats a grey area, Some people will say a short draw with the keg behind the bar is the way to go, Others will say that the keg is not being stored in a cold room and makes the pint worse.

There are bars with short draws and bad pints and long draws and perfect pints.

Line length isn't really important if its flowing all the time. If the lines are longer then there's more beer in the line to go stale therefore pints will be bad if theres no flow.
I had a pub with the longest lines I've seen but the best pints

Reputable Rog · 22-07-2018 10:02am

I'm a country barman, AMA wrote: »

DO you remember the extra cold they brought in a few years back. It never really took off.

I think that it effectively became standard. Had a pint of Beamish last week, couldn't taste a thing it was so cold, gone to ****e since Heineken took it over.

osarusan · 22-07-2018 10:15am

Considering the normal service provided (range of food, drinks, facilities) by a country pub, what is the most ridiculous customer order/expectation you have had?

jt69er · 22-07-2018 11:22am

allthedoyles wrote: »

How often do Guinness and other brewers call to check the pints you pour ?

Lines cleaned and equipment serviced every 23 working days.

clio_16v · 22-07-2018 11:28am

jt69er wrote: »

Lines cleaned and equipment serviced every 23 working days.

Dont they have a new system now where they only call out half as often?

jt69er · 22-07-2018 11:35am

clio_16v wrote: »

jt69er wrote: »

Lines cleaned and equipment serviced every 23 working days.

Dont they have a new system now where they only call out half as often?

Originally was 20 days, extended to 23 days in the last year or so.

Rows Grower · 22-07-2018 12:23pm

Do ye give regulars a free drink or two at Christmas time?

When was the last time ye got something for nothing from Guinness?

Is it true they are the tightest crowd to deal with?

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 1:03pm

clio_16v wrote: »

Dont they have a new system now where they only call out half as often?

I thought he meant the way it was a few years back, A random person would call and order a pint of guinness and ask for the receipt. They would then give you a score out of ten and a free polo shirt or fleece.

When they reps call to clean the lines the wont wait around for someone to order a Guinness to check the quality if there is no one drinking it.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 1:45pm

Rows Grower wrote: »

Do ye give regulars a free drink or two at Christmas time?

When was the last time ye got something for nothing from Guinness?

Is it true they are the tightest crowd to deal with?

Yeah the regulars get looked after at Christmas. Guinness never give us anything. The might with busy city bars but im not too sure.

I cant remember the last time I saw a guinness promotion. Carling are brilliant to deal with. Always giving tops and running competitions.

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 1:51pm

osarusan wrote: »

Considering the normal service provided (range of food, drinks, facilities) by a country pub, what is the most ridiculous customer order/expectation you have had?

The regulars know what we have and are grand, Its usually Americans who insist on paying with dollars instead of card or euros. I had a european tourist pass through and the lady asked if she could use the bathroom. I let her. On the way back she asked for a glass of tap water and gave out there was no lemon with the water and the signage for the bathroom was poor.

I gave her a slice of lemon and asked for €1. She reluctantly paid after I explained that ice, lemon, glasswaher all cost money and she was taking up space. We would never charge normally for this but she was being a pain in the hole.

Redser87 · 22-07-2018 2:13pm

Do you care about trip advisor reviews, do good/ bad ones make any difference to your business?
Do you think you'll continue to work part time whenever you start paramedic training?

I'm a country barman, AMA · 22-07-2018 4:03pm

Redser87 wrote: »

Do you care about trip advisor reviews, do good/ bad ones make any difference to your business?
Do you think you'll continue to work part time whenever you start paramedic training?

THey really dont make any difference to where I work. If would be a different story if we served food I would imagine.

I prob will work away part time if I need to,

Alpha_zero · 22-07-2018 4:18pm

Country barman who gives a **** lol, now you talking to a minimum wage worker

Now ye're talking - to a country barman

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