A Divided Cork

In Ireland, even something as widely cherished as stout could not escape the Protestant/Catholic divide that tore the country apart for years.

Beamish and Murphy’s stouts, both brewed in Cork, Ireland, had their own religious followings historically.

William Beamish and William Crawford bought out an existing brewery in 1792 and renamed it the Cork Porter Brewery. The protestant men were the first to corner the stout market (even before Guinness).



(Video note: This is a very strange commerical and in no way represents Beamish's Protestant leanings. I just couldn't find any other advertisement for the beer.)

Four Catholic brothers — James, Francis, William and Jerome Murphy — established the Lady’s Well Brewery in Cork in 1854. The brewery got its name from a well on a hill adjacent to the building that was considered a place of devotion by local Catholics, according to a Sept. 1997 story in The Financial Times.



(Video note: Again, a strange ad that has nothing to do with religious leanings. Also, the music was apparently dubbed in. Needless to say, both breweries should work on their advertising strategies.)

A story July 1996 story in The Observer reported that “employees were warned against fraternizing and rare letters from one brewery to the other were formally head ‘Dear Beamish’ or ‘Dear Murphy.’”

The breweries’ brews differ slightly, though both qualify as iconic Irish dry stouts. Murphy’s tastes a bit sweeter than Beamish. Beamish is a bit lighter in texture than Murphy’s.

Despite the religious and product differences between the breweries, both now share the similar fate of watching Guinness dominate the stout market. The most recent figures show that nearly 90 percent of all stouts consumed in Ireland are Guinnesses. Both Murphy’s and Beamish reported slight increases in market share last year, but neither appears poised to strip the stout king of its title.