Shopping in Dublin

With one of the best selections of whiskies in the city, CWS is also blessed with charming staff (that’s you, James) happy to give you a little bit of history on pot stills and English taxes, as well as some guidance on what to buy. If you’re out to impress, you might be tempted by the 50-year old bottle of Yellow Spot for €15,000, but most are happy with a single pot still Greenspot or Writer’s Tears, a mix of single pot still and single malt. (We vaguely remember, it was James who directed us to Neary’s for the finest pint of Guinness.) Tasting events usually take place on the last Thursday of each month.

Celtic Whiskey Shop

You get a lot for your buck/euro at the Design House, where three floors of a Georgian house showcase over 50 Irish designers, 60 craft designers and 16 artists, as well as offering shared studio space and professional fashion workrooms. Find everything from pottery, hand-stitched dresses, jewellery and accessories – we especially loved Sonya’s chunky crocheted wrap – to kidswear and men’s clothing, including stylish tweed ties. There’s also a small downstairs café.

The Design House

This place is really cool, in a controlled temperature sort of way, and filled with the best Irish and European cheeses, chosen by owners Kevin and Seamus Sheridan, made from cow, goat, sheep and buffalo milk. Knowledgeable staff encourage ‘try before you buy’, and award-winning Carrigbyrne’s Humming Bark – a soft washed rind cheese – is one for the brave, but we’d heartily recommend the wonderfully nutty Derg Farmhouse and award-winning richly creamy sheep’s milk Crozier Blue. You’ll also find Irish and European charcuterie, own-made chutneys and compotes, biscuits and a good selection of wines. Sheridans will host its eighth Irish food festival in May 2017.

Sheridans Cheesemongers

It’s hidden down a passageway off Wicklow Street, so you might miss it, but shouldn’t, not least for the bizarre eclectica – Barbie pushing a trolley of mini Guinness bottles, a collection of severed dolls’ heads – that surrounds the shelves and tables piled high with second-hand books. Along with Joyce and Beckett, find vintage Beano and collections of Irish song lyrics. At the back of the shop Freebird Records has racks of new and second-hand vinyl, and stacks of CDs and DVDs. Knowledgeable staff are on hand to give advice on stock, and the passageway to the entrance gives details of local music and theatre gigs.

15a Wicklow Street. Tel: +353 1 679 7272

This Irish family-run business takes its name from a Wicklow village where, back in 1723, the original woollen mill was set up as a co-operative where farmers could spin and weave, and the yarn was then turned into tweeds and blankets.The Suffolk Street mini department store is famous for its gorgeous wool, cashmere and mohair throws and rugs – still handwoven at the original mill – as well as lovely homewares, ceramics and toiletries. There’s a basement food hall and deli for take-outs, and a great café on the top floor with views across Dublin.

Avoca