Confession and confusion

Having made a bit of a fuss over the opening of Tallaght's Priory Market, and its built-in brewery, when it opened last summer, I was overdue a revisit. I stopped by on a recent Friday afternoon to find it's all still there and going, though no longer thronged by the crowds from its early days. The good food and fresh beer all still feature, I'm happy to say.The final outstanding beer from Priory Brewing's advertised relaunch line-up is Confession Bock. This proved very much on the dunkel end of the bock spectrum, a specification it meets with its dark garnet colour and 5.8% ABV. I'm ever wary of too much vegetal hop bitterness in bocks in general but this emphasises the caramel malt instead, almost to doppelbock levels, with an extra dose of invigorating coffee roast. The hops are present but restrained, bringing a mild tang of celery and damp lettuce, clearly signalling that authentic noble hops have been deployed. It's almost but not quite sticky, and well-balanced with properly…