St. Paddy's Day quiz: We put Irish pub owners to the test

Everyone might be Irish on St. Patrick's Day, but not everyone knows why they're celebrating.

The fact is, there's more to St. Patrick's Day than beer. But dig into the history of March 17 and you'll find that myths abound. Why is green the official color? What the heck do leprechauns really do (besides covet Lucky Charms marshmallows)? Is St. Patrick even Irish?

This sounds like fodder for a round of pub trivia. To get some answers, we came up with a pop quiz to test the Irishness of three Irish pub owners.

Let's meet our contestants. Each is distinguished in the Twin Cities pub scene for hosting some of the largest St. Paddy's Day parties around. We have Dermot Cowley of O'Donovan's and Jake O'Connor's. Then there's Kieran Folliard, impresario behind Kieran's, Cooper, the Local and the Liffey. And lastly, the young duo of Ted Casper and Mike Runyon, the owners of Shamrock's in St. Paul.

"As long as I beat Kieran Folliard, that's all I care about," Cowley joked.

Enough with the smack talk, let's get down to business and find out which Irish pub owner knows his St. Paddy's Day history. Will it be one of the native Irishmen? Or the young punks from St. Paul?

Let the trivia commence!

THE QUESTIONS (AND ANSWERS)1Why did St. Patrick banish snakes from Ireland?

Cowley: "He was getting rid of all those sinners and snakes to start Christianity. They were the metaphor." (Correct!)

Folliard: "St. Patrick banished snakes from Ireland after he had converted all of the people to Catholicism. There were no snakes in Ireland." (Correct!)

Casper and Runyon (answering together): "He was driving the pagan beliefs out of Ireland, so they used snakes as the metaphor. You could say that the snakes were drinking all the whiskey. That would be my reason." (Correct!)

2 Where was St. Patrick born?

Cowley: "Everybody thinks he's an Irishman, but he was actually born in Wales." (Correct!)

Folliard: "Quite controversial. He was born of Roman origin in Wales." (Correct!)

Casper and Runyon: "Scotland. They say north Britain, but that's technically Scotland. We'd rather admit that our saints are actually Scottish than British. It's easier on our souls." (Correct!)

3 What color was originally associated with St. Patrick?

Cowley: "Blue." (Correct!)

Folliard: "It was a lighter shade of green." (Wrong!)

Casper and Runyon: "I think it was blue for some reason." (Correct!)

4 Finish this St. Patrick's Day toast: "The Scots have their whiskey, the Welsh have their tongue, but the Irish have ... "

Cowley: "They have O'Donovan's Irish Pub, of course." (Wrong!)

Folliard: "The Irish had everything else, but in particular, they have the gift of the gab." (Wrong!)

Casper and Runyon: "Luck? The looks! The beautiful redheads. I don't know. We gotta go with the looks." (Wrong!)

5 Besides being a breakfast-cereal mascot, what is the official job of a leprechaun?

Cowley: "He minds the money. He's the official banker of St. Patrick's Day." (Half correct!)

Folliard: "It is to protect the pot of gold." (Half correct!)

Casper and Runyon: "To protect his pot of gold." (Half correct!)

True or false? Drinking massive amounts of beer has always been a tradition on St. Paddy's Day in Ireland.

Cowley: "False! When I grew up in Ireland, that was one of three days a year when the pubs were actually closed. We all went to church. But I kind of prefer the way we do it here." (Correct!)

Folliard: "That would be a travesty, if it were true. It is false. It is and was a religious holiday in Ireland." (Correct!)

Casper and Runyon: "False. It's a day of worship. They shut down the majority of the bars. The massive amounts of beer? That's what we celebrate over here." (Correct!)

1. There were never snakes in Ireland. Most likely, this was a metaphor for banishing pagan beliefs.

2. He was born around 400 A.D. to a wealthy family in Roman-controlled Britain. Exact location is up for debate, so we'll accept both Wales and Scotland.

3. Blue! The use of green didn't happen until the 18th century as a symbol of nationalism and the "wearing of the green" shamrock on lapels.

4. " ... Paddy, who's second to none!"

5. These unfriendly little guys are cobblers -- they make shoes for fairies. In their spare time, they protect that pot of gold.

Bonus: False. Before 1970, Irish pubs were closed down because St. Patrick's Day was a religious holiday. Luckily, the law was repealed.

Unbelievable. It's a tie! Both Cowley and the tag team of Casper and Runyon win with four (and a half) correct answers. These pub owners will just have to share in the glory of knowing they are the supreme St. Patrick's Day trivia kings. Folliard, on the other hand, had this to say: "I can tell you that pretty much everything to do with St. Patrick is all made up. Every single thing!"

Tom Horgen • 612-673-7909 • Follow him on Twitter: @tomhorgen