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IT”S A FAR cry from communion wine, but if serial entrepreneur Dr Pearse Lyons has his way, then St James’s Church in Dublin’s Liberties will soon be home to a distillery.
Lyons’ company, Alltech, is known for its animal feeds, but has lodged plans with An Bord Pleanala to open a working distillery and visitor centre in the ancient church, which was built in 1268. It became a Protestant church in 1539 before collapsing in 1761 and being rebuilt in in 1859.
Daniel O’Connell laid the foundation for the rebuilt church in 1844.
Architects are assessing how to fit a distillery into the church, with preliminary indications that the pot still will be put in the old nave of the building. The distillery would be in good company, overlooking Guinness’ Brewery, where over 7 million hectolitres of beer are brewed each year.
While primarily focused on animal feeds and nutrition, it’s not the first time that Alltech has toyed with alcoholic beverages. It also owns a family of drinks under the Kentucky flag, including an ales, stouts, bourbon and IPA.
The company clocked over$1 billion (€722 million) in sales last year, and has operations in the US, Asiam Europe and South America. Founder Lyons is Irish, and his grandfather was buried in the church graveyard in 1948.
The distillery hopes to capitalise on its position on Failte Ireland’s new ‘Dubline’ tourist trail, which runs from Trinity College to Kilmainham. In addition to the distillery and visitor centre, the church will be home to a museum showing the history of the site.
If approved, it will be the second distillery in the area, with Teelings whiskey also planning a €10 million euro facility in The Liberties.
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If a company like Pfizer can vaccinate their entire workforce and now starting to vaccinate their families as well, shouldn’t questions be asked why they can’t provide the same service to the Irish taxpayer considering they are looked after handsomely with our low corporate tax rate
@Murph11: Provide the vaccines free ? Favour us over other countries ? Worth remembering as well, those low corporate tax rates provide thousands of workers with well paid jobs, from which the exchequer is looked after handsomely by way of income tax receipts.
@Tommy Roche: I fully understand Tommy. I’m a frontline worker and was classed as such prior to the pandemic. I still have to go out and deal with what I always dealt with and haven’t even been prioritised yet. Just annoys me
@Murph11: honest to god. You might as well ask if Dublin GAA can outfit their whole squads and coaches with gear, why can’t they do it for every Dub?
@Murph11: they have been working extremely hard the last 14 months. A lot of places give their staff perks. This must be one of the best. We’ll done all in Pfizer and thanks. Thanks for the other special pill also !
I do not trust the vaccination go to the fda and its not approved their head has said they will not be approved until fully agreed its safe for everyone, why are our elderly parents in homes who have had their 2 doses of the vaccination not been given their freedom too see and hug their loved ones, why are people who are fully vacanated told to act if they are not we can’t were a mask forever, 99.9 percent of our population have survived we want our life back, to hug to see smiles and breath fresh air love to all
@John Leonard: because people who are vaccinated can still pass the virus on to people who aren’t vaccinated so until enough people are vaccinated things can’t go back to how they were.
Provides less than 5% of irelands vaccines so far. So these people will be waiting
@john s: got my Moderna on Sunday. Haven’t met to many people who have had it. Just a sore arm so far, no mad zombies symptoms as of yet.
@Ann Mc Shane: my sister in the US got it, second dose last week caused some discomfort, shakes, nausea, headache.
Recommendations over there are to take in plenty of water in the two days prior to the second dose.
@Ann Mc Shane: My neighbour in her late 60s got the Moderna. She’s the only one I know who did, but she said she had no side effects at all.
@Derdaly: yeah just a sore arm but to be expected. Supposedly one of the best ones to take
If it was good enough for Dolly Parton, it would be good enough for me.
Not great but better than nothing.
I got it
That’s good re Moderna. Where are the rest of them in this? 1.3 billion people in India and they’re making most vax.
have your say