Overview
The Smithwick’s Experience sits on the exact ground where Smithwick’s ale was brewed until 2013, on Parliament Street in Kilkenny City, a short walk from Kilkenny Castle on the Medieval Mile. The tour takes about an hour: interactive rooms, projection-mapping, historic artefacts and the smell of malt and hops, ending in a tasting room where over-18s get a complimentary pint of Smithwick’s Red Ale and everyone else a soft drink. As a rainy-day hour in Kilkenny it earns its place – but go in knowing it’s a polished visitor experience on a former brewery, not a working one.
One scheduling trap worth flagging up front: from November to February the tours run Thursday to Monday only – no tours on Tuesdays or Wednesdays, though the bar and shop stay open all week.
The history of the site
Brewing here long predates the Smithwick name. Franciscan friars established a friary on this ground in the 13th century and brewed ale for themselves, as monastic communities across medieval Ireland did, until the friary was dissolved during the Reformation in 1537. Brewing carried on under later owners, and in 1710 John Smithwick leased the premises – the start of the line that made this Ireland’s oldest brewing site.
Over the following centuries the Smithwicks supplied ale to the town, the British army and eventually the whole island, through the Penal Laws, the Famine and two world wars. Brewing on the site ended in 2013 and the visitor centre opened in 2014. It closed again in 2020 during the pandemic and reopened in July 2022.
The tour
A local guide walks the group through the brewery’s story with a mix of storytelling and technology, and the design leans on getting hands and noses involved rather than reading panels. The stations along the way:
- Milling the malt – Handle the raw grain before it’s crushed.
- Stirring the mash – A copper vat where the guide explains how the sugars are drawn out of the malt.
- Smelling the hops – Sensory pods releasing the aroma of the hops in the old recipes.
- The projected monks – Life-size projections of historic figures, including the Franciscan brewers, on the brewery walls.
It finishes in the tasting room, where a staff member pours the Red Ale to the right head and temperature. It’s a genuinely good pint, and a fair reward for the walk-round.
Masters of Ale upgrade
If the standard pint isn’t enough, the premium Masters of Ale session adds a four-ale tasting paddle – usually the Red Ale, a Pale Ale, Kilkenny and a rotating seasonal – with a guided run through how each looks, smells and tastes. You also get a short tutorial on pouring a proper pint and take home an engraved glass. Worth it for anyone with a real interest in beer; skip it if you’re just after the tour and the pint.
The Barrel Yard
The Barrel Yard hosts live music, street food and seasonal events, and it stays open even when the tours don’t – including those Tuesdays and Wednesdays in winter. It’s a useful fallback if you turn up on a no-tour day.
Accessibility
The venue is wheelchair accessible via the retail store entrance on Parliament Street, with a lift serving the top floor. Sensory-friendly tours run on the first Thursday of each month at 12pm, with reduced noise and lighting and sensory kits available; the venue is AsIAm Autism Friendly Accredited.
Planning your visit
On the Medieval Mile, it’s an easy walk from most city-centre accommodation. Driving, the M9 links Dublin to Kilkenny in about 90 minutes; the nearest station is Kilkenny MacDonagh Junction, about 15 minutes on foot. There’s no on-site parking, but the Parade Car Park and Market Yard are both a five-minute walk away.
Tickets – Standard adult entry is €15, including the tour and complimentary drink; booking online in advance brings it to €12, worth doing in summer and school holidays when tours fill. Tour frequency varies by season – every 20 minutes in July and August, every 30 minutes from March to June and September to October, and hourly (12pm–4pm, Thursday to Monday) from November to February. Bring photo ID if you’re over 18 and want the pint.
More of Kilkenny
Afterwards, the Medieval Mile runs on to the Black Abbey, a 13th-century Dominican church that echoes the brewery’s monastic start, while Rothe House and the Medieval Mile Museum fill in the town’s civic history. Further out, Jerpoint Abbey and the riverside village of Callan make good half-day trips, and the Kilkenny Design Centre is worth an hour on the way back.