By: The BeerGoddess

'Tis the season my lads and lasses! Thursday is St. Patrick's Day, the day to wear green, dance a jig and drink Irish beer.

IRISH FUN Interactive: Everything Irish Map: Virtual Tour Of Ireland Plan Ahead: Best Beer Parties: Drink Recipes | Food Ideas Survey: Are You Irish? Quiz: St. Patrick's Day Quiz: Know Your Irish?

While green-inspired Happy Hours and the recognition of Ireland's finest brews is the focal point of this column, please notice the array of additional Irish knowledge offered forth, including Irish truths, timelines, tours, legends and confessions.

Being of the Irish persuasion myself, I thought it would be fun to virtually view some Irish brews on the Web. If you are 21 or older, feel free to imbibe in a real version of some of these beers. Just be careful sipping and surfing.

One of the best ways to honor the Irish patron saint as Dubliners do is with Guinness Draught. This opaque, black brew is often considered the quintessential Irish quaff. One sip from the creamy head and you will see why. Of course, Guinness is a stout that is best consumed as a hand-drawn draught while sitting at a 100-year-old corner pub in Dublin.

Can't do that? Then, can it!

I know. I can't believe that I, the BeerGoddess, am telling you to get a can of beer. It goes against everything I stand for. But Guinness uses a special can that contains a small nitrogen capsule. The capsule releases millions of tiny bubbles -- much smaller than the gassy, soda-pop-like bubbles created by carbon dioxide -- into the beer the moment the container is opened. The nitrogen creates that incredibly creamy head and smooth, dense body that Guinness Draught is known for.

Do you like the looks of those fancy Black and Tans that you see people quaffing at the corner bar? How do they make the dark beer float on top of the lighter beer without mixing them up?

It's easy if you have the right tool: a spoon! First, pour the light beer into the glass, about half-full. A nice lager or pale ale will do the trick. I like Harp or Bass when I'm trying to be authentic, but I've also had great success with Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale out of Bend, Ore.

Rest the spoon over the glass with the backside of the spoon facing upward. Pour the freshly opened can of Guinness Draught over the back end of the spoon and watch it tumble on top of the lighter beer until the glass is full. The spoon should "break" the stream of Guinness, helping it stay afloat.

You might need some practice before you get it right. I am sure you can find some friends who would be willing to help you drink your mistakes!

Some other beers that promise to get those eyes smiling -- Irish or otherwise -- are Beamish, Kilkenny, and Murphy's Irish Stout or Irish Red.

In the small villages that dot Ireland, pubs play an important role in the social life and are often the hub of the community. For instance, Dingle town, population around 1,000, boasts more than 50 pubs. That's one pub for every 20 people.

Now, through the magic of the Internet, you can tip a frosty one across the miles by doing your own virtual Irish pub crawl.

While you virtually visit the pubs you might want to learn some Irish toasts. Try your hand at "To Your Health" (Sláinte! -- say it like a quickly slurred "It's a lawn chair" or "Slam the door") and other great Irish party lines. Several links to Gaelic pronunciation are available on the site, thankfully.

Quaff Quote Croi follain agus gob fliuch. (pronounced: "KREE FO-lah-ihn ah-guhs GOB FLOOKH") It's a Gaelic toast, meaning: "A healthy heart and a wet mouth!"

Couldn't have said it better myself!