Take a Craft Beer Tour of Ireland with this Rhode Island Brewery

Trágmar Ale Works is partnering with Stepping Stones Tours to offer 'A Taste of Ireland' in 2027.

August 25, 2026

Lauren Clem,

A man wearing a Tragmar Ale Works T-shirt stands facing a scenic view of fields and mountains along the water.

Trágmar Ale Works co-owner Chris Kerr’s hometown of Cushendall is one of the stops on the “A Taste of Ireland” tour taking place in August 2027. (Photos courtesy of Chris Kerr)

Ever wanted to experience the Emerald Isle?

If your idea of “well-traveled” means sampling all the best craft breweries, distilleries and cideries a place has to offer alongside fellow beer nerds, then now might be the right time.

Trágmar Ale Works, the year-and-a-half-old Bristol brewery with a distinctive Irish flair, has teamed up with Rhode Island-based tour operator Stepping Stones Tours to offer “A Taste of Ireland.” The ten-day group tour takes place in August 2027 and features a sampling of northern Irish sites, with an emphasis on the island’s craft brewing and distilling scenes.

“People always want to get that local feeling when they travel and go to a new place. People want to learn about a culture, they don’t want to go to the tourist traps anymore,” says Chris Kerr, co-owner of Trágmar Ale Works and an Ireland native. “Meeting the local people and going to the local pubs, that’s what I think Irish travel is all about.”

While the itinerary includes a visit to a classic Irish pub — the legendary Sean’s Bar, which traces its history to 900 AD — the focus is on a newer phenomenon in the Irish beer scene. According to Kerr, the Irish craft beer scene is about a decade behind the United States, with taps still dominated by major brands like Guinness, Smithwick’s and Harp through much of the 2000s. It’s only recently, he says, that beer drinkers have begun to embrace smaller breweries producing nontraditional styles.

“When I left Ireland back in 2006, there wasn’t a lot of craft breweries or craft beer being produced at all. At that point, it was a lot of the big breweries dominating the market,” he says. “Since then, it’s come up.”

Tour participants will enjoy near-daily visits to craft businesses like Mescan Brewery, a brewery in County Mayo that specializes in Belgian-style ales. Other breweries include The White Hag in County Sligo and Carlingford Brewing on the Cooley Peninsula. Along with breweries, the schedule includes stops at craft distilleries such as Micil Distillery, known for its gin and poitín — AKA Irish moonshine — as well as long-running establishments like Bushmills Distillery in Northern Ireland. Kerr says small Irish distilleries, like breweries, are experiencing a renaissance after years of being overshadowed by Scotch.

The trip is coordinated by Erin Egresitz, an East Greenwich resident and owner of Stepping Stones Tours. Egresitz, who also owns local walking tour company Rhody Rambles, started her career as a tour manager for larger travel companies and often ran tours to Ireland. She founded Stepping Stones Tours two years ago as an alternative to larger package tours.

“I started my own business because I saw the opportunity to really experience Ireland in a different way. I felt like a lot of the bigger name tour operators, it’s a checklist of all the things that you’re supposed to see when you’re in Ireland,” she says.

Egresitz frequently plans custom itineraries for groups such as Irish dance schools, but says it’s the first time she’s planned a craft beverage-focused tour. The partnership is part of a growing trend of culinary travel featuring guides with industry experience. Locally, Gracie’s restaurant in Providence organizes trips as part of its Culinary Bliss travel series, and the owners of Agave Social and Condesa restaurants offer agave tours of Mexico as part of their New England Agave Club. In 2024, AAA began offering food tours guided by acclaimed local chefs under its Club Adventures tour operator, but the tours are no longer offered.

Egresitz, herself a proud Irish American, was introduced to Trágmar Ale Works by her friend Meghan Kelly, who runs the Kelly School of Irish Dance. After talking with Kerr and brewery co-owner Michael Godet, she says, it became clear there was interest in hosting a beverage-focused tour. She drew up several potential routes and began calling craft businesses — many of whom, she says, had never hosted a large tour group before.

“My whole approach to Stepping Stones is to really appreciate the culture more and travel a little bit more slowly. Yes, the views are beautiful, but you want to get out and talk to people,” she says.

The group settled on a northern route between Galway and Dublin for two reasons: One, it’s a less popular (but no less scenic) route for first-time visitors, who often flock to busy tourist sites in the south of Ireland. And two, it’s home to Cushendall, the seaside town in County Antrim where Kerr grew up. The schedule will include a drive through Cushendall, as well as other immersive cultural experiences like a sheepdog demonstration and an Irish hurling experience with the Gaelic Athletic Association.

And, though Egresitz admits it’s a bit of tourist trap, the tour also features a visit to the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. It is an Irish beer tour, after all.

“The last time I was back home in Ireland was last August. I won’t get a chance to go this year, so next August will be the next time I get back there,” Kerr says.

The trip has already seen an outpouring of interest from Trágmar regulars and mug club members. Kerr says they plan to host social nights in the leadup to the tour so participants can get to know each other.

Egresitz hopes it will mark the start of a new kind of tourism based out of Rhode Island — focused less on Instagrammable views, and more on the beverages that keep travelers going.

“After we came up with this, I said, ‘I wonder if any other breweries will be interested,’” she says.

For more information about the trip, visit steppingstonestours.com/tragmar2027.