Guinness Draught

Brewed by St. James’s Gate (Diageo)
Style: Dry Stout
Dublin, Ireland

Serve in English pint

Who would have thought rocking a Guiness from a can in Hawai’i would be an ideal afternoon? I do love a guiness. Crisp and roasty with a nice lingering bitterness.

Can 500ml at home. Pours black with thick, creamy, tan head. Aromas is roasted malts. Taste is hint of bitter and light salty. Full body, thick, soft carbonations.

The benchmark... Pours DEEEEP red, almost black. Amazing head, brought on by the nitrogen in the tap (or the can widget) Very creamy mouthfeel. Clean, with slight coffee and licorice notes. My all time favorite.

Keg at the Bridge, Kingswinford. Well, you can’t deny a pint of Guinness looks good. Shame about the rest. Aroma is watery roasted malt and the taste is the same.

Ok,it’s highly hyped and was created for export rather recently (1961) in the history of the brewery. Poured from a 14.9 oz. can with the nitrogen widget in to a Spaten glass. Color is opaque black. Head is off white and long lasting with much sheet lacing also long lasting. Nose is roasted malt. Taste is slighty bitter with a characteristic but slightly roasted maltiness. With the nitro widget, the carbonation is extremely fine with the head remaining to the last, which I like. The palate is a milky smoothness that could lead one to drinking far more of this beverage than one may wish. While it is not the best stout in the world, it is the most famous and for good reason because it is eminently quaffable and maintains the rudiments of a stout. Interestingly, it states it is pasteurized, more brews should. Enjoy!

Nitro. Foamy heavily milked coffee head. Texture is extremely creamy, slightly milkshake-ish. Taste is kind of strange. Slightly tart, minimal roast or chocolate characteristic. Kind of thin, moderately bitter in the finish. Something unpleasant here, like cheese that has gone bad but isn’t quite to the point of lambic pleasantry. Not drinking again.

Når den kommer i glasset er den mørk og fristende som den skal være, men skumtoppen er ikke riktig så tett og fin som når den kommer fra fat. Den lukter skuffende lite (har jeg egentlig gitt meg tid til å lukte på en Guinness før?). Smaken er kraftig og deilig, men samtidig får jeg en følelse av å ha både øl og vann i munnen. Er det ølet som er slik eller er det jeg som får så mye vann i munnen at det påvirker smaken? Ettersmaken er lang og deilig, med innslag av røyk og kaffe.

I appreciate the creaminess of this beer, but the flavor profile is lacking in a stout and I find it to be one dimensional. There’s some roasted and coffee flavors, but I have to imagine hard to get those flavors to come through.