IT’S SLATED TO close in December 2013 but the St Francis Abbey brewery in Kilkenny could yet find new life as a visitor centre under plans being considered by its owner, global drinks giant Diageo.
“We are exploring the option of putting a visitor centre into Kilkenny,” John O’Keeffe, Diageo’s global category director for beer told me. “We’re in discussions right now about that with Kilkenny County Council and development agencies.
“A [final] decision hasn’t been taken but its something were actively exploring.”
The 25-acre brewery is famous for producing Smithwick’s ale and is the country’s oldest, dating back 301 years.
It’s also a popular tourist attraction for the city and local groups are keen to retain it as an attraction for visitors.
Diageo plans to close its breweries in Kilkenny, which has 44 staff, and Dundalk and centralise its beer production at new facilities in St James’s Gate, Dublin, as part of a €153 million investment.
According to O’Keeffe, Smithwick’s is “undergoing a rejuvenation” with punters “rediscovering” the ale. “We’ve had a year-and-a-half of growth,” he said. “We recently launched Smithwick’s pale ale, which is going down very well.”