Galway City Distillery — Restaurant in Galway

An absolute must-stop while in Galway; adjust your plans to come visit if you haven't already. Awesome atmosphere, fantastic drinks and the staff went above and beyond to make this the highlight of our stay.

The bar is a great "drinks after dinner" option. The cocktail menu rotates seasonally and the staff is encouraged to experiment and come up with new drinks. Between clean, sharp G&T's (they make their own tonic) and the smoked-birch glass on the old fashioned, everything is unique and memorable.

Even if you're not super into gin (like me), you definitely don't want to miss their gin class. A 3-hour experience that absolutely flies by. You'll learn about the history of gin, process of distilling, and ingredients that go into a gin. You then sample the smell/taste of 25+ ingredients p adjust the flavor profile. Finally, you select a few (feel free to ask the staff for recommendations) and distill your own bottle of gin to take home. The entire time you're sampling old and new gins they've come up with to give you inspiration.

We each ended up with our own personalized crafted bottle of gin; snacks and several cocktails were included during the lesson. As someone who isn't the biggest gin fan, and who has toured several breweries and distilleries, this was far and above the best tour/experience I've ever had. The staff were extremely knowledgeable and made us feel like part of the team. Jim, Steve, April, Bruce (awesome job!) and everyone involved were absolutely fantastic. We're already planning a return to Galway, and...

My partner and I did the Gin Masterclass for his Birthday and it was completely worth it! We were lucky enough to both be the only 2 people in the class (Last minute group cancellation) AND to be given the class by the CEO himself.

We got great insight into Galway's History, Gin Making, the Galway City Distillery and the industry as a whole. The class was incredibly interesting. The gins were flowing for the whole course and the fact you can highly customise your bottle gin from the favour profile to the strength is fantastic, not like Jameson Dublin where you just pour it and stick a label on the bottle. I went for a very flowery/Fruity drink while my partner created a gin literally called "Lamb Shank", all the herbal favours of a big ol'roast dinner.

We were very satisfied with the course by the end and relaxed by the bar for the extra few drinks, and I must compliment the bar staff for being so friendly and welcoming, we had some lovely chats and they were happy to answer any additional questions we had.

I would highly recommend the masterclass, I think it's a great birthday gift, particularly to those interested in their alcohol. Definitely has something to do with a few friends and if you can fit it into your schedule, honestly just stop by their bar...

Such an amazing and unique place! I initially went to do the apothecary tasting (American apothecary) but it was canceled earlier and I missed the email. They were so kind about it and I sat at the bar to get a drink. The bartender took the time to go though all the different tinctures and how they make their gin. I had a martini that was customized to my flavor preferences! All the bartenders were fun to chat with while I was there alone. It was so amazing I decided to come back the following week for the gin distilling class. I got very lucky and the founder, Jim, led the class and it was just me so I had a one on one and got to make my own gin with whatever herbs distilled in it that I wanted. (Unlimited Gin&tonics w custom flavors throughout!!). I made a full sized bottle and got to take it home with me. I learned so much about the history, distilling, science, and sustainability of the distillery. Jim is very passionate about this place and you can tell by the people that work there and the products they make. 100% must go if you appreciate the craft of distilling or amazing fresh drinks! All ingredients are as local as possible and...