Guinness Mid-Strength

Draught at Guinness Storehouse. Dark almost black coloured beer with a medium creamy head. Roasted malty sweet aroma. Medium roasted palate. Finish is malty roasted, begins light but ends very bitter, with strong roasted bitter touches. Some stronger touches and at the same time less strong than the regular Guinness.

Had an opportunity to test this on the tour of the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. The look is very similar to a regular pint of Guinness but definitely thinner and a touch more watery. Flavor was a bit of a letdown as well, lacks the grainy, toasted characters of the origional. Watery and slightly bitter on the palate. I don’t really get the phenomenon of low alcohol beers, but I guess if for some reason you HAD to have less alcohol this might be a nice alternative. Otherwise, I can’t imagine a set of circumstances in which this would ever touch my lips again.

`At 2.8 per cent proof, the mid-strength product is lower in alcohol than Guinness Light was (3.6 per cent). The crucial difference is that mid-strength Guinness is designed to look and taste as close as possible to the regular 4.2 per cent brew. Pours identical to regular Guinness, aroma a little lighter. Has a lighter taste than regular Guinness however is certainly very good. I would not choose it over regular Guinness however it may appeal to people who are driving or cutting back on alcohol but still want to enjoy a pint of Guinness. Nice enough.