Let’s start with the pub

One look at its deep, dark wood interior tells you that here’s a place that is soaked in history. As indeed it is. Formerly known as The Fourtrees, it was a thriving pub named after the four ancient lime trees in Main Street that marked a popular stopping point for the old Dublin stagecoach. The beautiful old buildings have now been restored to their former period elegance and are home to The StillHouse Moira, with its winning combination of pub craic, delicious locally-sourced seasonal food and ever-so-more-ish exotic cocktails.

A passionate advocate of local in-season produce, Barbara describes her kitchen team’s culinary style as ‘scratch cooking’, as she explains. “There are many wonderful artisan food producers to draw from in this region, so everything we serve is cooked from scratch, using whatever fresh, local produce is available on the day from our suppliers.”

Now on to the distillery

The same buildings that house the pub are also home to Hughes Craft Distillery. This small-batch spirits producer has gained quite an international reputation for the quality of its award-winning RubyBlue spirits, which includes Premium Potato Vodkas, Real Fruit Liqueurs, StillHouse Exclusive Gin and Moonshine. Handcrafted in small batches, you can taste the loving care that goes into each of these unique and distinctive spirits. Take RubyBlue Vodka, for instance, Ireland’s first potato-distilled vodka. Exceptionally smooth, it is redolent of vanilla and crisp apple. And one sip of the fruit liqueurs will reveal the care that has gone into selecting the wild berries and botanicals that give each one its subtle flavour profile.

Take a tour or join a class

The StillHouse Moira takes you behind the scenes to discover some of the secrets that go into making its award-winning spirits. You can even take what you’ve learned and apply it to creating your very own unique and special bottle of spirit.

Ruby Blue Spirits Tasting & Tour

Your tour of this small batch distillery starts off with a welcoming Kir Royale or Cranberry Bellini made with Barbara and Stuart’s own RubyBlue liqueurs. The Tasting & Tour lasts about 60 minutes, during which you will hear about their journey and see you how they make their award-winning RubyBlue range of spirits.

To make your visit even more special, why not upgrade your Tasting & Tour by adding Lunch or Dinner before or after the class!

Cocktail Masterclass

What better way could there be to spend a Saturday afternoon than learning how to make and serve inspirational cocktails?

The Class lasts approximately 90 minutes, during which the bartender will take you through a range spirits and cocktails using fresh local and seasonal ingredients with a focus on RubyBlue and StillHouse spirits produced at the distillery. You will have the opportunity to make three cocktails and you’re guaranteed to have lots of fun.

Back to school…Gin School

Discover the secrets of craft-distilling at Hughes Craft Distillery’s Gin School. You’ll not only learn all about small-batch distilling, you’ll go on a journey of personal creativity, selecting botanicals with which to make your own hand-crafted gin, and distilling it, drop by drop, from your small copper pot still.

Cut with Antrim Hills artesian water, and personalised with your label, you will leave with your own unique bottle of gin, and your own bespoke recipe card.

For more information and to make your booking, simply email info@loughneaghtours.com