Latest news with #ASipofIrish
Irish Independent
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Beloved Baileys Irish Cream cows from Wicklow to star in new film
The latest offering by the Carlow director is his love letter to Irish produce, featuring surprising discoveries, connections and Irish influences across the globe, from Prince Albert of Monaco's ties to the Guinness family to our underappreciated contributions to wine making. Surprising viewers who think of Ireland as just the home of Guinness and Irish stew, the cast of A Sip of Irish includes a range of artisans and public figures, including Midleton whiskey blender Deirdre O'Carroll, Donegal-based Muff Liquor Co in which Russell Crowe is a proud investor and chefs Anna Haugh and JR Ryall of Ballymaloe, along with Una Healy, Ryan Tubridy, Laura Whitmore, winemaker Michael Flatley (founder of Flatley Whiskey) and Pat Shortt. Easily among the most colourful and captivating characters in the stellar cast, Tinahely farmer Joe Hayden and his herd of Holstein Friesian cows take centre stage in the first segment of the film, which premieres in the Tinahely Courthouse Arts Centre on August 1. Although he has worked with the likes of Ian McKellen and Judi Dench on Quintessentially British, and with Stephen Fry in Sparkling: The Story of Champagne, Frank said that the day spent filming on the unique Baileys Farm, where Joe's cows receive a full spa treatment, will live long in his memory. 'The film celebrates Ireland's contribution to the drinks and culinary world, and I wanted to find surprising stories for familiar products,' Frank began. 'It looks at whiskey, stout, artisan brands like Scraggy Bay and Muff Liquor, and also Bailey's Irish Cream. Ultimately, the film is an entertaining origin story for all those products. 'With Baileys, I thought, we know it's really popular. We know it's 50pc cream. We know it has sold two billion bottles around the world. But what don't we know? Where is it actually made? 'I discovered that the quintessential Baileys dairy farm is called the Baileys Farm in Tinahely, County Wicklow, and there's an amazing, dynamic farmer there called Joe Hayden who has won many awards for his Holstein Friesian cows. 'He has 230 cows that produce the cream for Baileys Irish Cream. He doesn't call them 'his herd' or 'his cows', but rather his 'Bailey's ladies', and he treats them as such. 'You often hear of racehorses being treated better than humans. And in a way, Joe has almost like a spa treatment set up for his cows because his philosophy is that a happy cow is more productive, which is a fact. A happy cow will produce better quality milk. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more 'He plays music to his cows. So, when they're in the milking parlour, the cows have to listen to his taste in music, which is The Killers, Bruce Springsteen, and Coldplay. He had a saxophonist there last week, and they seemed to like it. He thinks it makes them more productive, and he's probably right. 'When I went to the farm, I thought, this is amazing, Joe is a very forward-looking farmer with lots of interesting methods – I must be the first to have come here to put him and the Baileys Ladies on camera. But no, last month he had the Real Housewives of Orange County pay him a visit. So, the secret is out!' Delighted to have contributed to the production, Joe said that it was a privilege to collaborate with 'gentleman' Frank on a project that will place a global spotlight on Wicklow and its long-standing ties to products that have put Irish food and drinks on the map. 'This film is going to be huge for the Baileys Farm, and it's going to be a huge thing for Wicklow and Tinahely,' he said. 'To be featured in such a way, and to get the whole first segment of the film dedicated to us, it's fantastic for the county. 'Frank spent the day down here. He is a very interesting individual, and I really enjoyed working with him. An absolute professional, and a gentleman to boot. 'I wasn't sure how he was going to knit everything together, but the film is very cleverly done. The way Frank has woven the story of the Irish influences into everything from Hennessy to Californian white wine development – he's a very clever guy. I suppose, like in a lot of things, Ireland punches well above its weight. 'I've seen the film a few times, and every time I look at it, I enjoy it more. It's going to be very good for giving Wicklow exposure across the globe and for the business here, and I'm thoroughly looking forward to the premiere.' Just down the road from Joe's farm, Frank and his crew visited St Patrick's Well, which was supposedly visited by St Patrick in the fifth century, and is the most southerly point in Ireland he is known to have travelled to. As Frank explained, the reason he wanted to film there was to establish a connection with Prince Albert of Monaco, who has a paternal connection to the Guinness family on the Grimaldi side of the family. 'We came to shoot in Wicklow because there are two great locations right next to each other that tell very interesting stories that very little is known about,' he said. 'We spoke to Prince Albert in the film, as one of his ancestors married into the Guinness family, so he joked with us that he considers Guinness the family drink! 'Before coming to Ireland, St Patrick was educated at the Lérins Islands, which are just off the coast of Cannes, off the coast of Monaco. 'So in the film, we segue from Saint Patrick's Well in Wicklow to Monaco and Prince Albert talking about how two of his ancestors were the principal abbots of Lérins Monastery, where the monks make really nice red wine to this day. 'Another little-known story is the wine geese, these dynamic Irishmen from Galway, Tipperary and Kildare who left Ireland in predominantly the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries for France and set up vineyards that are still world famous to this day, including Lynch-Bages, Phélan Ségur, and Léoville Barton. 'So, again, of course, we're known for Guinness, stout, and whiskey, but in the film, we say, well, we should be known for wine as well. 'And Hennessy Cognac, as Richard Hennessy was from Cork, and we tell that story of how he ended up in Cognac having fought for the French King Louis XV against the English at the Battle of Fontenoy.' A Sip of Irish will premiere at the Tinahely Courthouse Arts Centre on Friday, August 1, at 8pm. Tickets are €8/€6 and available to the public via An additional public screening will take place on the same day at Carlow County Library at 3pm. There will be a reception sponsored by Baileys at both screenings. The film will be released on digital platforms, including Amazon Prime and iTunes, on August 2.
RTÉ News
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Irish in culinary and drinks world celebrated in new film
The writer-director of a new film about the work of the Irish in the culinary and drinks world has told RTÉ Entertainment he wanted to show international audiences that there was more to his home country than just stereotypes. Carlow filmmaker Frank Mannion's latest documentary is A Sip of Irish, having previously made Quintessentially Irish and Quintessentially British. "I wanted to make a film that would appeal primarily to an international audience who think of Ireland as just the land of Guinness and Irish stew," Mannion told RTÉ Entertainment. "Since the time of Brian Boru, we have often been stereotyped as a nation of big drinkers. But the irony is that our alcohol consumption has been declining for over two decades - just as our drinks exports have been steadily increasing. "Instead of filming at obvious locations like the Guinness Storehouse, we highlight the craftsmanship of artisan brands like Killahora Orchards in Co Cork, where celebrity chef Anna Haugh raves about its Rare Apple Ice Wine, and Kinnegar Brewing in Letterkenny. Pat Shortt told us that its draught Scraggy Bay IPA is his favourite tipple." "I interviewed Deirdre O'Carroll, the very talented blender of Redbreast, Midleton, and Jameson whiskeys," Mannion continued. "Her interest in the intricacies of whiskey-making was sparked by an innocuous-sounding university module - at University College Cork - called Cereals and Related Beverages. "Jameson sells tens of millions of bottles a year but has historically always faced stiff competition, especially when Prohibition decimated (sic) the local Irish industry. "Almost 100 years later, let's hope that Deirdre and the whiskey industry ride the storm of the tariffs being imposed by the world's most powerful non-drinker, President Trump." When asked for what had surprised him during the making of his film, Mannion said: "I was surprised to learn about the Wine Geese, the dynamic Irish emigrants who became hugely successful in the wine world in Bordeaux, Napa Valley, and Australia. "The Lynch family who gave their name to the world-renowned Château Lynch-Bages were from Galway. "In fact, an 'Irish wine' was the first into space: a 1975 half-bottle of Lynch-Bages made it onboard the Discovery space shuttle, making it the world's most travelled wine bottle. "That bottle is now in the possession of Kinou Cazes Hachemian, the owner of Lynch-Bages. Sadly, I couldn't persuade her to open it for A Sip of Irish. She did claim that it was out of this world!" "I was surprised to learn that what we think of as Irish is not Irish in origin," he added. "Bailey's Irish Cream was invented by a British team led by a South African in London, partly to reduce Ireland's excess dairy production. "I also learned that when Russell Crowe was filming The Pope's Exorcist in Ireland, he came across the village of Muff in Donegal - one of our A Sip of Irish filming locations. He loved Muff Liquor's gin and vodka so much that he invested in the company and brought fellow musicians Ed Sheeran and Ronan Keating on board too."
