Interesting

[CMcG]

But Northern Ireland is Ireland. Am I missing something?

I suppose it depends on where people want to put the emphasis i.e. geography vs. political borders...

Place of manufacture vs. origin of the brand vs. the style are separate but related issues, as in the case of Guinness that MacSpadger raised. The word "Irish" is commonly applied to a heterogeneous variety of phenomena -- to some people's dismany? A set of Irish stout examples could include a stout of Irish geographic provenance (Northern or Republican), a company of Irish origin producing stout outside Ireland, or even an an Irish-style stout made in Canada by Canadians of dubious heritage