Ryan Lally’s Laminated Scones
Laminated scones are not a thing, but here at The Irish Stew we like to make the odd prediction as to what we will be eating in years to come, and laminated scones are that thing. The idea is typical of the madcap brilliance of Ryan Lally, famous for his ground-breaking Grá Pizzas, famous as the convention-challenging baker at Ómós in Abbeyleix. Ryan and the Theatre of Food kitchen whipped up a bunch of laminated scones made with Irish heritage flour at Electric Picnic, and the audience devoured them so fast that John McKenna never even got a bite of one. So, tell your granny she needs to get her lamination game on, because the scone will never be the same again.
Shutting the Department of Agriculture
Ryan Lally was one of the quartet of singular agricultural practitioners who gathered together at EP to talk about the challenges facing growers and specialists trying to make their way in the Irish agricultural maze.
To set the guys at their ease, the first thing John McKenna asked Ryan, Brendan Guinan of Fiorbhia Farm, Anthony O’Toole of Fat Tomato and Colman Power of Power Fitness was one of those of weird curve ball questions that Gay Byrne used to love to chuck at his panellists: Denmark has announced the closure of its department of Agriculture, so should Ireland do the same?
Reader, all four announced that closing the Department of Ag seemed like a smashing idea.
The Minister of Agriculture has not been approached for a response because, you know, we know exactly what he would say.
Wendell Berry begat Michael Pollan
Keen Substackers may have been amazed at the enormous outpouring of remembrance and tribute which happened recently upon the death of the great American farmer, writer and sage, Wendell Berry, at the age of 92.
The reason for their surprise is simple: Berry’s most significant writings belonged to a previous age, so for many contemporary readers he simply wasn’t on the bookshelf.
But here is a question to ask to consider Berry’s continuing influence: would the writer Michael Pollan, who has enjoyed enormous success with important books such as The Omnivore’s Dilemma and How to Change Your Mind, have been able to write his books without the example and influence of Wendell Berry?
We suspect the answer is no.
Would Alice Waters have affixed her culinary career to a parallel career as a food activist without the influence and example of Wendell Berry?
We suspect the answer is no.
Berry is the seed from which other mighty trees have grown, which is why reading his books is so rewarding and stimulating. He was a mighty dude, the real American hero in an age of fakes. You can safely ignore his poetry, but his best works, such as The Unsettling of America and the essay collection The Gift of Good Land are as good as elegant polemic gets.
Fierce Mild
We would be worried, if we were the Government. Here’s what’s to worry about: the Irish are giving up the drink.
And if the Irish give up the drink, then the Exchequer suffers because we pay very high excise duties on our beloved pints and scoops. You might think Simon Harris would be lying awake at night, wondering how he can encourage more folk into the snug.
He isn’t, of course, because the Government has so much money from other sources that the sum collected in Excise – a paltry €1. 25 billion in 2025 – is only just over 1% of the Government purse.
But the move away from booze is a global phenom, not just a local one. Wine consumption levels are back to where they were in the early 1960’s, and pubs everywhere are struggling to attract new customers.
It’s not all bad news, however. As we enjoyed the sunniest Irish summer since 1976, our response to the balmy evenings was to flip open a bottle of the new Fierce Mild Lively Lager. This is indeed a lively brew, a worthy companion to the excellent Extra Pale Ale with which Fergal Carroll and Cathal Byrne have been converting the masses to non-alcohol beers over the last couple of years.
Fierce Mild are smashing drinks, thirst-slaking and fun, and their delivery service, should you want to order a batch of bottles, is fleet and slick. Indeed, these beers show just how far n/a wines still have to travel, because they have all the vital characteristics of beer. They just don’t have the alcohol. Which is what the Government taxes.
