greggwiggins

"Moderate"? Try low.

A bottle of Miller Lite contains 4.4% ABV (Alcohol by volume). A pint of draft Guinness? 4.2% ABV.

Yes, Guinness has less alcohol than Miller Lite. Why do you think the Irish (and others) can sit around drinking it all day?

There are versions of Guinness with a higher alcohol content, (Bottled "Extra Stout" for example) but the 4.2% version is the most commonly available.

What makes Guinness darker than other beers is that the barley is roasted more and is darker -- just as toasters come with controls that let you adjust how dark you like your toast. Just like toasted vs. untoasted bread, you get different flavors from the extra roasting. Some people don't like them and think it's a "burnt" flavor.

Also, Guinness is an ale, while most of the "megabrews" are lagers. I'll avoid a long explanation of what differentiates the two primary types of beer, but ales tend to have a more intense and robust flavor, while lagers are more attenuated and crisper. You could draw a comparison with red and white wines, where ales are "red" and lagers are "white".

I'll quote Michael Jackson (the British writer, not the U.S. singer) from his Pocket Guide To Beer when it comes to people who drink only one style of beer, particularly the big brands' pilseners: "It is as though the whole world were to drink Rhine wines and forget about the very existence of Burgundy or Bordeaux. The 'whites' of the beer world are more stable and consistent, but the top-fermenting yeasts endow the 'reds' with great personality."

And "warm" vs. "cold" is not 70 degrees vs. 35 degrees. "Warm" means the beer should be served between 45 and 50 degrees, which -- just like a red wine -- allows the full flavor to be released. Maybe "cool" vs. "cold" would be a better terminology but it's probably too late to arrange that.

drbond

OK! I hate Guiness anywhere but an Irish pub! In the US I prefer Harp.

drbond

Your information is very correct for everything except the ABV. Again this is also correct if you refer only to US Guiness, however, it is incorrect for Guiness brewed for sale in Ireland.

KevAZ

Aw heck I love Guinness when it's 110 here! I will guzzle pilsners in much greater quantities in hot weather though.

I too used to drink Corona but am boycotting all things Mexican after the illegals pulled their stunts earlier this year. Bitburger and Oranjeboom now fill the fridge in our outside bar. I even purchased Oranjeboom stickers to go over the Corona logos on my 4' beer ice box. I support my adopted country of the Netherlands over those who would tell the USA what our laws should be. I even learned Dutch and paid taxes when we moved there!

greggwiggins

Actually, the Guinness brewed for pubs in Ireland is the identical beer as the Guinness brewed for sale in the pubs and bars of the U.S. or Canada.

According to the official "Specifications of the Various Types of Guinness" as published by the company and available on this website, the relevant numbers are:

Draught Guinness
Ireland & North America
OG: 1039 (9.75 Plato)
Alcohol: 3.4% abw, 4.2%abv
BU: 45
Colour: EBC - 130

The "Guinness Extra Stout" sold in bottles in the U.S. does contain more alcohol than the "Extra Stout" sold in England or Ireland. You can find the differences on the website I've cited above.

Chapel Hill Guy

Oh this is a silly generalization. I drink light beer most days because otherwise I'd be a blimp by now. But I've also had a lot of marvelous local brews all around Belgium and in Amsterdam.

However I really don't care for Guinness...yuck. How do you people drink that mud?

De gustibus non est disputandum.

cyberdad

The thing I've found is that most people who don't like Guinness are "intimidated" by it. Then you have those people who will just try a couple of sips. Its different, its not their concept of "beer", so they decide they don't like it.

The fact of the matter is the 'stats' of Guinness are close to a light beer....only it has loads more flavor and character.

Yes, its an acquired taste...but all you need to do is give it a pint or two at one sitting. Give yourself a fair chance to "get into it". An evening in Dublin did it for me.

Two personal observations: I can have a couple pints of Guinness, then get up and go to work the next morning and not feel at all like I've been imbibing the night before. Not many beers give me a "free pass" from that effect.

Secondly: I think all this stuff about the Guinness being better in Ireland than anywhere else is ridiculous. Tastes exactly the same to me....which is to say delicious...in any country.

No its not my "favorite". But it would be one of my favorites, depending on the occasion. I don't suggest it on a hot, muggy afternoon. But its great with food and/or to share with friends in a pub, etc.

For those who think they don't like it, I say give it another try....a "fair" try.

Duhey2

Another interesting factoid (from my grandmother) is that Guinness is high in iron. If it came from my Memere, it's got to be true .

This also explains the whole "Guinness for Strength" ads in Ireland.



That's what Four Peaks hefe-weizen is for.......

PS-KevAZ, I was all over Oranjeboom (they sometimes carry it at Costco here) but was told by a Dutch national that it's a cheap beer by their standards. Hey, I liked it.

ContinentalFan

Guinness used to run ads in Ireland "Guinness is Good for You." The iron. I guess the company would have to run clinical trials to make that label claim today.

jacknyoc

I love all kinds of beer...just ask my wife...but never truly appreciated Guiness until I travel to London and had a chance to try the various brews...unique flavors, less carbinated, less chilled variations. Since then, I've been a big fan of Guinness, Boddington, half-and-half, etc. It must have been getting a true taste in a wonderful environment...but I love 'em.

number_6

Oranjeboom is the Budweiser of Holland, pretty much the cheapest beer (but still good). Of course the Belgian beers are so much better -- astonishingly so. My favourite is Duvel (means Devil), which is the Belgian's idea of a Scottish ale. Created after WW I in honour of some Scottish regiment that liberated a Belgian town. Never had beer like that in Scotland (or anywhere in the UK for that matter); one of the best beers in the world, but hard to find (also hard to ship, it kept shattering the bottles until they went to thicker glass).

Speaking of Four Peaks, I like their Kiltlifter. Is their Hef competitive with Widmer (which is the benchmark US Hef and quite good)?

ajnz

I can definitely agree with the first one. I have had quite a few, uh, long nights with Guinness and can get into work the next morning. Lagers will kill me.

As far as it tasting different; I can assure you it tastes very different in North America than it does in New Zealand and Australia. I actually stopped drinking it while in Canada because I did not like the way it tasted. I've been told this is due to it being pastuerized in North America, but I'm not sure if that is correct.

I have a funny feeling the ABV in NZ is 5% for Guinness [brewed here by Lion Breweries], but I could be wrong.

aj.

DavidDTW

I drink very little beer, because I can't stand the taste of most. Guinness is the one exception, and I think it tastes great. Reading through this thread, I am making notes on suggestions for other dark beers to try. Keep em coming.

number_6

Chimay Triple. Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout (North Coast Brewing Co.).

For more info about stouts you might like, see http://beeradvocate.com/news/stories_read/291/

ContinentalFan

I have heard the self same thing: Guinness in Ireland is cold filtered as opposed to pasteurized. I have heard people use the expression that "Guinness doesn't travel well." I don't know what the company does with Guinness overseas. Perhaps, they have found a way to pasteurize it without affect the taste too drastically. Draft Guinness is now available in many, many more places that it was, say, 20 years ago. Back then, finding a bar outside of NYC that had Guinness on tap was a real treat.