Mick O Connell of Neighbourhood Wines. Photo: Gerry Mooney
Dubliner Mick O’Connell took his studies to the infamously challenging level of Master of Wine, writing a thesis on Sardinian wine. Having moved to London with a rock band, he began learning about wine to earn better money in retailers like Oddbins and Handford Wines admitting “I always hoped that one day the music would pay for the wine”. Today, Mick owns the dynamic Neighbourhood Wine in Leeson Street (with a south county Dublin branch on the way) with importer Shane Murphy.
Among their selection of Irish-made wines you will find Mick’s own baby, a light and juicy red which he makes in Sardinia. The wine’s original name was Garnacha not Guerra, a cheeky play on ‘Cannonau’, which is the official name for Sardinia’s robust red wine made from a local type of Garnacha grape. Mick makes his in a very different style and so is not allowed to use the term Cannonau or even Garnachia as unamused officials info
Mick O Connell of Neighbourhood Wines. Photo: Gerry Mooney
Dubliner Mick O’Connell took his studies to the infamously challenging level of Master of Wine, writing a thesis on Sardinian wine. Having moved to London with a rock band, he began learning about wine to earn better money in retailers like Oddbins and Handford Wines admitting “I always hoped that one day the music would pay for the wine”. Today, Mick owns the dynamic Neighbourhood Wine in Leeson Street (with a south county Dublin branch on the way) with importer Shane Murphy.
Among their selection of Irish-made wines you will find Mick’s own baby, a light and juicy red which he makes in Sardinia. The wine’s original name was Garnacha not Guerra, a cheeky play on ‘Cannonau’, which is the official name for Sardinia’s robust red wine made from a local type of Garnacha grape. Mick makes his in a very different style and so is not allowed to use the term Cannonau or even Garnachia as unamused officials info
On one night during the 1990s second-year arts student Gisèle Scanlon was making her way on to University College Dublin s Belfield campus. "You wouldn t expect the dog to be out," she recalls of the rough weather.
Gisèle Scanlon
Ms Scanlon says Mr Byrne didn t throw punches but just pulled the man away and helped her to her feet. He said nothing. I thought he would have shouted. It was all very silently done like a Zen Buddhist. After the intervention, Ms Scanlon s attacker didn t fight back - he just scampered away into the night.
The woman who is now president of Trinity Graduates Students Union has never forgotten her rescuer s friendly demeanour. I was looking at him and he had the kindest eyes I ve ever seen in a human being, she says.
After the danger was gone, and the attacker was nowhere to be seen, she walked towards her friends and Mr Byrne followed closely behind . In her view he was keeping watch.