The core premise and most episodes revolve around inheritance disputes, brewery expansion, elections, and traditional family/business intrigue in a period setting, with casting limited to white actors in historically plausible roles and no race or gender swaps of established figures. However, the series injects prominent modern ideological framing that disrupts the historical focus, particularly through its treatment of sexuality and politics. The portrayal of Arthur Guinness stands out as a clear example of contemporary attitudes overriding period accuracy, depicting him as unashamed and joyful in his sexuality with multiple explicit scenes, a blackmail subplot, and a lavender marriage drawn from speculation but presented through a modern lens per creator statements.

This element receives substantial screen time and drives personal conflict in ways that feel inserted rather than organic to the 19th-century setting. Similarly, Irish republican Fenian characters such as Ellen Cochrane anchor subplots centered on independence, colonialism, and activism against the Protestant elite, while female figures including Anne, Ellen, and Adelaide are positioned as intelligent powerhouses navigating a male-dominated era with storylines involving miscarriage and abortion, elevating these themes to central narrative drivers that compete with the business and family core.