A man who has made it his life mission to find the best pints of Guinness in Ireland has released the results of his remarkable research.
As everyone who has lived in or visited the Republic of Ireland will tell you at great length, where and how the iconic stout is poured is very, very important.
Daragh Curran - AKA the Guinness Guru - is a great believer in the philosophy that not all Guinness are made equal, Belfast Life reported.
He has amassed a huge cult following on social media for his reviews of the creamy Celtic refreshment across the entire island of Ireland.
The Guinness Guru said: “Ask me that 10 years ago I would say 'What cult following?'. Ask me now and I would tell you it’s down to social media - not blowing smoke up my own arse.
“Back in 2013, when I was a young budding 20-year-old, to order a pint of Guinness was considered odd. It was perceived as an ‘old man's drink'.
“If you sit and drink with a group of young lads now they will talk just as much about the Guinness as they will football and other general male topics."
Daragh uses a scale of one to ten, with anything over nine considered 'excellent' and anything below six 'bad'.
He worked out which county in Ireland has the best pints of Guinness in general by averaging out the scores from his research.
Here are the rankings:
Galway - 8.53
Limerick - 8.42
Kerry - 8.31
Sligo - 8.28
Donegal - 8.22
Cork - 8.2
Derry - 8.2
Wexford - 8.1
Kilkenny - 8.1
Dublin - 7.95
Waterford - 7.95
Armagh - 7.93
Louth - 7.84
Meath - 7.7
Fermanagh - 7.62
Antrim - 7.45
Kildare - 7
Galway comes out on top as number one for a pint in Ireland, Connaught did exceptionally well in the rankings, with Galway and Sligo in the top five.
With no pub featuring a score less than eight, you will be unfortunate to find a bad pint of Guinness in Galway.
Featuring a score less than eight, Limerick placed second, followed by Kerry (third place), and Donegal (fifth) featured in the top five.
The Guinness Guru said: "My rankings tend to only concern the pubs themselves. But when put into perspective, the standard of Guinness in Galway was absolutely top tier.
“For me, the city of Galway manages to mesh together the exciting feeling of being in the big smoke with the rural heartbeat of the West," Daragh said.
"If Dublin and Dingle had a lovechild, the child’s name would be Galway."
Dublin is in the bottom half of Irish counties for a good Guinness, and scored horrifically compared to competitors - but this should be taken with a pinch of salt.
The city had by far the biggest sample size out of any county, so while an average score of 7.95/10 doesn’t hold up well against the competition, it’s most likely the best chance of getting a good pint of Guinness.
It’s not all bad news, as The Guinness Guru himself handed out two 9s with The Gravediggers at 9.3, and Bowe’s Lounge Bar on Fleet Street at 9.
Guinness’ popularity is not just Ireland. It’s currently brewed in 49 countries and sold in over 150.
According to Business Plus, the average cost of a pint of Guinness is now €5.12 in the Republic and £5.29 in Northern Ireland
When it comes to individual pubs, a total of 34 spots delivered a less than satisfactory score of 6/10.
If you’re wandering the streets of Dublin and a thirst comes upon you, be cautious of where you visit, as the capital has more poor pints than any other area the stout fan visited.
Responding to what he dubbed ‘slanderous claims’, the Guinness Guru said: “I can’t help but stand strong against these slanderous claims.
"This is purely down to the number of pubs. I’m no statistician but I reckon I’ve been to 20-30 pubs around Dublin city as opposed to 4-5 boozers in other cities.
“I would argue that if you took my best five reviews from Dublin it would most certainly rival Galway and the other top cities.
"Dublin is my bread and butter so I’d have to call for a VAR review on this controversial ‘bottom half of the table’ statement.
“For me, pubs such as The Gravediggers, Mulligan’s, Walsh’s and Bowes are the Guinness Gold Standard that’s set in Dublin and adhered to right across the country."
Derry is the cream of the crop in the north, Daragh argued.
Derry was the highest rated county on the table in Northern Ireland followed by Armagh – more famous for its cider tradition – then Fermanagh and Antrim, a disappointing second from bottom.
Kildare is the worst place for a pint of Guinness, averaging lowly 7.3 - full half a point behind their neighbours Meath.
