This week we had a chat with Margaret from A.M.O in Portugal and Cathal from Rascals in Ireland. Both began as homebrewers and now run breweries that have very strong taprooms.
Originally from Canada, where she started her interest in home brewing, Margaret moved to Portugal about 10 years ago and her continuing interest in brewing led her to start commercial brewing in 2016. A.M.O brew a wide range of beer styles, driven in large part by the feedback from the regulars in the taproom.
From Dublin, Cathal spent some years in New Zealand where he encountered a vibrant craft scene. On returning to Ireland he started Rascals with his wife in 2014. They combine the brewery with a taproom that specialises in high-quality pizza.
We were originally intended to be joined by Taras from Octo in Cyprus but he was delayed at an earlier appointment and unfortunately could not make it. Nevertheless we had a good chat that covered specifics of brewing some beer styles, the place of community in brewing, getting feedback from regulars, and the scenes in each country.