Hospitality and sustainability expert Kate McCabe and James Beard-nominated chef and restauranteur Max Sussman recently announced the launch of Bog & Thunder’s Irish Collaborations. The female-founded, boutique, eco-travel company will focus solely on food and tours of Ireland, from Cork to Dublin to Galway, with each small group featuring a collaboration with an Irish artisan, chef, producer or creative. For each tour, food will serve as the foundation and will revolve around a core theme.

“We’re using Bog & Thunder to tell a new food story about Ireland,” said Sussman. “I’ve been in the restaurant industry for 20 years, and I don’t believe my culinary peers in the United States realize the depth and breadth of contemporary Irish food culture. After some of our first trips to Ireland, I knew right away that people who love food need to know about what’s happening there. We’re so excited to feature local artisans, craftspeople, and chefs through our work, as well as to co-create events and experiences that are otherwise not available to travelers.”

Some of the 2022 tours include Welcome to the West: Planting Roots in Galway and Connemara with Chef Jess Murphy (June 21–26, 2022); Wild West Cork: Fish, Forage and Feast with Sally Barnes (Oct. 16–24, 2022); and Megalithic Gastronomic: From Dublin to the Boyne Valley with Jeni Glasgow and Reuven Diaz (July 10–15, 2022).

Bog & Thunder also partners with Zingerman’s, an artisan food giant, to co-lead its first-ever Ireland tours starting September 2022.