After landing, we grabbed airport coffee and boarded our bus to Cork. Most of us dozed off despite the picture-perfect scenery outside—blue skies, fluffy clouds, and rolling green hills.

We arrived at Castlemartyr Resort, a grand 220-acre estate featuring the ruins of an 800-year-old castle. After a quick refresh, it was time for afternoon tea—scones, finger sandwiches, and petit-fours aplenty. In my room waiting for me were Kerrygold Butter Club socks, custom bonbons from Grá Chocolates by Gráinne Mullins, and the Ballymaloe Desserts cookbook by JR Ryall.

We toured the castle before dressing up for dinner at Terre, the resort’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant. Chef Vincent Crepel, originally from France, worked his magic with local ingredients like Ballycotton blue lobster, trout, horseradish, even wasabi.

We hit the road for Tipperary to tour Aidan and Derval Kennedy’s award-winning dairy farm, where their grass-fed cows produce milk that’s turned into Kerrygold butter and cheese. We visited the milking parlor, hung out with the herd as they munched on grass in the pasture, and ended up in the Kennedys’ sunroom for tea, scones, and a splash of local whiskey. Azaleas, rhododendrons, and roses were in bloom all around us.

Next stop: Kerrygold HQ. Hairnets and blue booties on, we toured the factory, then sat down to a lunch by famed Chef Paul Flynn of The Tannery in Dungarvan. (The title of his recent book? Butter Boy.) The menu included Paul’s famous potted crab, chicken liver mousse, and roasted carrots and beets tossed with herbs and seeds. The Kerrygold team also set out a grazing table of new products, including a heavenly cinnamon-sugar butter (only available in the U.S.) and fluffy cream cheese (unfortunately only available in Ireland and Germany).

That evening, we headed to Ballymaloe House for dinner outside in the walled garden. I sipped a rhubarb curd mocktail by mixologist Oisín Davis and caught up with yet another Irish culinary star, the delightful Rory O’Connell. Every course featured Kerrygold—lobster with butter, roast beef with buttery béarnaise, new potatoes in a shimmering butter pool. Dessert? A Kerrygold cheese course and roasted rhubarb with custard. We wandered around the garden as the sun set, surrounded by pink foxgloves, purple artichokes, and late-summer magic.

We returned to Ballymaloe for a tour of the cookery school and its grounds, including the famous shell house. Before my panel—recorded live for Radio Cherry Bombe—I had lunch with my panelists: Darina, Vanessa Kiely O’Connor (aka The Dairy Fairy), and husband-and-wife farmers Dara and Beatrix Killeen. We talked about farm tech, biodiversity, and the need to get more women and young folks into the field. I asked Isabella, the Killeen’s young daughter, what she loves most about living on a farm. It’s all about the animals for her.

Post panel, we strolled around the food festival and took in a shucking lesson with Sarah de Brun of Oysome Oysters. Given how many oysters I’ve eaten in my lifetime, you’d think I’d be better at opening them. It was a fun fail regardless, made all the better by Sarah’s homemade brown bread.

Later, we stopped at the Kerrygold Butter Club to listen to a talk about sandwiches featuring our tourmate Olivia and British food writer Jay Rayner. They covered everything from Katz’s pastrami to American versus British bacon to the most loved and loathed condiments. (Sorry, mayo.)

Dinner at Ballymaloe House featured a showstopping finale: the dessert trolley, loaded with Pastry Chef JR’s creations—panna cotta layered with espresso jelly, gooseberry tarts, and more. Before bed, we settled into the Castlemartyr library for a few pints of Guinness and a round of Fishbowl, the slightly chaotic party game.

We said goodbye to Ballymaloe and made our way to Dublin. We were spending a night at The Merrion, easily my favorite hotel in the city. My room was done up in soothing shades of pink, green, and cream, and I would have happily lived there forever. Would they notice if I never checked out?

We explored the Trinity College campus (have you read the Sally Rooney novels?) and St. Stephen’s Green park, uncharacteristically packed with sunbathers. Dinner was at L. Mulligan Grocer, operated by chef and co-owner Seáneen Sullivan. It's known for embracing local ingredients and its stellar Sunday roast: free-range chicken, sausage stuffing, two kinds of potatoes, veg, and gravy for days.

Our final stop was Walsh’s Pub, where we crowded into the “snug”—a secret space where women could drink privately back in the day—and I made a second and final attempt to “split the G.” I promise to drink my Guinness like a normal Irish person moving forward and not an American tourist.

I tacked on some extra time to explore and catch up with friends in the city. First stop: Pepper Pot Café for their cheddar, bacon, and pear sandwich, a slice of Victoria sponge, and a chat with owner Marian Kilcoyne, Camerino Bakery’s Caryna Camerino, and The Cookbook Club founder Mary Kilduff.

For dinner, I met up with Irish Pints author Ali Dunworth at Fish Shop on Benburb Street—a tiny gem with perfect fish and chips, the best calamari I’ve ever tasted, and a light-as-air crab toast with aioli.

I walked along the River Liffey back to my hotel, full, happy... and reluctant to pack my suitcase. If the luck of the Irish holds, maybe I’ll be invited back soon.