On the Road with Reid 'Round Ireland: Of Pub Grub and Toasteds and Cakes Made of Guinness (cont'd)

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A perfectly pulled pint of Guinness truly is a of work of art

But enough about Guinness. The counter at the corner pub doesn't begin and end with the Guinness tap. For one thing, there's its smaller but bitter (ha!) rival from Cork called Murphy's—sort of the Pepsi to Guinness's Coke—which brews up a smoother and slightly less bitter stout.

If you find these black beers so hearty you can practically chew them and too thick for accompanying a meal, there are some lighter (but not "lite"er) options. On the bitter/ale front, try the russet brew from Kilkenny spelled Smithwicks but pronounced "Smitticks" (the Irish ignore w's in the middle of words) and the amber bitter of Belfast, Caffery's. If it's a crisper, cleaner lager you're after—and you choose to avoid the ubiquitous Heineken, Carlsberg, and Buds at taps across the land out of principal of the thing—go for the Guinness-brewed beauty called Harp.

I will leave you today with one of many traditional Irish toasts (no, not "As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point the wrong way," though that's a good one), rather one geared toward traveling and which, as with most pragmatic Irish toasts, doubles as a prayer—just in case you find yourself in the pub on a Sunday:

May the road rise up to meet you

May the wind be always at your back

May the sun shine warm upon your face

And the rains fall soft upon your fields

And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Copyright (c) 2003 by Newsweek Budget Travel, Inc.

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