haha your 9 euro "complementary" pint. it was especially annoying that you could go to the top in an elevator and accidentally stop on a floor below the bar and see the whole damned tour for free and then go buy a pint up top for like 3.50. regardless, my pint was pretty good and the dude was drawing harps and shit in the head.
I went to Dublin last week and I had a great time. It's very expensive (spent around 50 euro a night on beer but i drink too much..3.70 to 4.50 a pint), but I thought it was well worth it. We probably spent 75% of our time in one bar or another. Temple Bar kinda sucks as it's too touristy.
Smithwicks > Beamish Red > Guinness (ales aren't as filling as stouts...i don't have the belly size to drink guinness all night long)
Smitticks is an ale made by Guinness. Beamish Red tastes similar to a black and tan. Show me someone who can drink 12 pints of Guinness and he probably outweighs me by 100 pounds. The Guinness over there tastes different from that over in the States because our Guinness is brewed in Canada and the water is different.