Gone are the days when you would go to the bar and have all of about three generic non-Irish beers to choose from, thanks to the ever-growing craft beer scene in Ireland, there are now multiple variations of ales and lagers to take your pick from and the best part is they are made right here on our shores, in every corner of the country.

One such spot is BRÚ Brewery in Co. Meath, which is carving out its name in the craft beer world with their award-winning selection of lagers, pales ales and a stout that would easily rival its most obvious Irish competitor.

Since they began in 2013, the brewery has now expanded with three pubs situated in Newbridge, Dublin 3 and Navan, which is where we found ourselves recently to try out their beer masterclass at their on site microbrewery.

The pub, called the BRÚ House, hosts a new Airbnb Experience organised by head brewer Kev and his partner Kat, which gives you a unique insight into just what it takes to make that thirst-quenching pint you sip on in your local of an evening.

The day kicks off at 11.30am - an early start to be talking beer but don't worry, you'll be eased in slowly before sampling the produce. Brewer Kev is the master of ceremonies (Kat runs things behind-the-scenes) and takes us through what we can expect from the day. Basically, we're going to brew some beer!

The majority of the the afternoon will be spent out in the microbrewery, located beside the pub's very cool looking Scandinavian inspired beer garden that we really didn't get to make any use of on a wet January day but can only imagine it would be hopping come summer. (Beer pun very much intended.)

This small brewery pales in comparison to the main one in Trim but it proves just the right size to take some amateurs like us through the process, which Kev is more than happy to do. His passion for beer brewing is clear and there seems to be very little, if anything, he doesn't know when it comes to making and drinking craft beer.

Proceedings were broken up throughout the day with tastings of some of the brewery's produce. Truth be told, I wasn't sure of the exact difference between lagers, pale ales and IPA's. Turns out, it is mainly about the hops. Pales ales have a great deal more hops than lager while IPA's - India Pale Ales - were called so as the British needed a way to get beer over to their Indian colonies back in the day. Hops preserved the beer longer leading to more being added, making it a stronger taste than your regular pale ale. The more you know.

We also learn how to actually properly taste a beer - it involves breathing in deeply through your nose, taking a sip, and then breathing out through your nose. It's amazing the level of depth to the flavour this can open up and I even found myself picking up a citrus hint to the BRÚ lager that would definitely have gone unnoticed before. Get me.

The BRÚ House in Navan is renowned for trying different flavours in their beers with a raspberry fruits flavour so popular regulars asked to be text when it is back in stock, while there's a plan for a summer fruits infused series that made me wonder if an hour on a bus is too far to go to for a pint.

The day is split with a two-course lunch of some very tasty pub grub before returning to the brewery to add some precious hops to our gradually forming ale. It's clear throughout the day of the level of attention that needs to go into brewing - at all times Kev ensures everything remains sterile and at the right temperature before any ingredients are added.

Kev, who started homebrewing himself about nine years ago before turning professional in the last couple years, was also full of helpful advice and tips about trying out home brewing for ourselves, which actually sounds pretty appealing. 

The day wrapped up around 5.30pm with a pint of our choosing, unfortunately, the brew  we made wouldn't be ready for another few weeks and while we would have happily waited that out among the friendly staff of the BRÚ House, it was probably time to get on the road.

We left with much more of an extensive knowledge of craft beers, a newfound appreciation for the amount of work that goes into those delicious pints, and just the right amount of a beer jacket to keep us warm on that bus back to Dublin.

If you fancy trying it out for yourself, you can find all the details about this Airbnb Experience here.