Guinness Extra Cold

[Gavin Jones]

France has an antarctic territory?

Wasn't it divvied up in a great powers WWI type agreement?

There's an interesting question here

a. Factual political

b. Extra Cold - what is the diet available for inhabitants of the Antarctic. I have lost my copy of Apsley Cherry-Gerrard but will look out. What a bastard Scott was.

Do Penguins carry the risk of a vitamin A overdose (Pinguin au couscous springs to mind).

[LiquidBread]

I remember drinking Guinness in an "Irish" pub in NYC last St. Pats Day. I had some actual real life Irish folk standing next to me letting me know that the Guinness I was drinking was crap and it's only good in Ireland (tasted pretty good to me!). It just so happened that I went to Dublin a few weeks latter and had Guinness.... I didn't notice a difference. 3 things I did notice: they do take a lot more time to pour their Guinness, which I like; the grass seems greener in Ireland; I have a thing for Irish girls.

Edited January 3, 2003 by LiquidBread (log)

[Matthew Grant]

I've had guiness recently in Dublin and less recently in Belfast and it certainly seems to taste better over there, but there is a very strong possibility that it is purely psychological.

I'm with Andy on this (we were discussing this today before I saw your post). Prior to the change in the gas system (see my earlier post) there was a noticeable difference, but now I think people get caught up in the romanticism of drinking a pint in Ireland compared to drinking a pint in any other country.

[Damian]

Haven't noticed a great difference between Guinness as served in the U.S., Ireland, UK, or Italy for that matter. I have noticed flavor variations in all of these places (OK, except Italy), mostly along the lines of a fresh and slightly sweet taste versus stale and somewhat mustier taste. Temperature has been pretty much the same, cool to fairly cold but never warm nor icy. I think there is such a thing as a place that serves good Guinness versus bad Guinness, but it is far more likely to be a factor of how clean the bar keeps its lines and equipment and how much of the stuff it turns over than of more subtle differences in water or brewing. Not that I totally discount water and brewing, just that I think one would need a decent size sample from outlets serving from a given brewery or water source to overcome more intrusive flavor factors. Any volunteers?

Actually, the Irish brew I wish they would import to the U.S. (in addition to me beloved black) is Smithwick's.

[Gavin Jones]

Actually, the Irish brew I wish they would import to the U.S. (in addition to me beloved black) is Smithwick's.

As in the gaseous beer-alike widely available?

Go drinking in the 'Kitchen' in Belfast & get a proper pint.

[jaybee]

The trend now continues with Murphys launching a fast flow as younger drinkers can't cope with the wait entailed in pouring a proper pint of stout.

Ain't it the truth? The idea that good things come to those who wait seems to have gone in the rubbish bin. Instanter the better.

Young 'uns drive the same way. They'll run you off the road for ten feet of tarmack.

I wonder if they're as fast on the trigger in other endeavors?

Edited January 4, 2003 by jaybee (log)

[Anna N]

Guiness - can't stand it but my Dad was a Guiness drinker and owned a pub in England. Each morning his first task was to bring up a case of 12 from the beer cellar, stick it on the hearth in front of the bar fire place (coal fire) and that was his sustenance for the day! To each his own.

[ranitidine]

Budweiser required a two week transition period when they switched their water source for the Newark NJ brewery from North Jersey Water company to Elizabethtown Water. Different mix of water elements, salts, etc so the water people tuned the mix of filtering agents for the new source. The brewery went on producing America's best selling beer.

I believe Budweiser varies its brewing process at each one of its breweries in order to eliminate the differences caused by different water sources so that its beer will taste the same all over the country.

[Rail Paul]

Budweiser required a two week transition period when they switched their water source for the Newark NJ brewery from North Jersey Water company to Elizabethtown Water. Different mix of water elements, salts, etc so the water people tuned the mix of filtering agents for the new source. The brewery went on producing America's best selling beer.

I believe Budweiser varies its brewing process at each one of its breweries in order to eliminate the differences caused by different water sources so that its beer will taste the same all over the country.

generally true.

The article went into some depth explaining how the water in Florida, New Hampshire, Fort Collins, etc has to be brought within a baseline in order for the brewing tweaks to work properly. Alkalinity, suspended salts, various minerals, aquifer vs surface water, etc differ in the various water sources across the country.

The science was way beyond me, but their filtering process sounded impressive.

[mogsob]

I also have tasted no difference between US and UK Guinness, although I understand that the Coach & Horses in Wellington St. serves the real Irish thing.

[AdamLawrence]

Let's face it, compared to real (ie living) beer, any pasteurised and pressurised beer - whether Guinness or otherwise - is just a pale (or dark ) imitation. If anyone ever sees Dwan's beers around in the UK or elsewhere (I guess the Wenlock might be a good place), try them. Now their An Dubhain (The Black One); that's a proper stout.

Packaged beer is Mouton-Cadet to real beer's Mouton-Rothschild.

Adam

[Adam Balic]

Extra cold is for tourists. I quite like Samuel Smiths Taddy Porter, even though it is bottled, goes well with oysters and grilled sausage (yes, both together). Or at least British sausages with 85% or above meat content.

[Gavin Jones]

Samuel Smiths Taddy Porter

Good call, and Sam Smith's Oatmeal Stout may be unfailingly recommended for invalids (& nursing mothers).

[stellabella]

Let's face it, compared to real (ie living) beer, any pasteurised and pressurised beer - whether Guinness or otherwise - is just a pale (or dark  ) imitation. If anyone ever sees Dwan's beers around in the UK or elsewhere (I guess the Wenlock might be a good place), try them. Now their An Dubhain (The Black One); that's a proper stout.

Packaged beer is Mouton-Cadet to real beer's Mouton-Rothschild.

Adam

god, FINALLY, adam, thank you

i'm an american who grew up drinking cold pale american lagers, and drinking real ale in the uk saved my life, truly.

there have been lots of discussions, some heated, about relativism and food, and in the case of beer, i can't agree that it comes down to preference. my sister tried to argue that with me once, "Look," she said, "Some people really like Budweiser better." maybe they like it better, but that doesn't make it better. last summer i was pleased to discover that the Queen's Larder in Bloomsbury had Bass REAL ALE on tap--my husband and i stopped in almost every afternoon for a half just because it was so damn good--the unpasteurized bass was thicker, sweeter, rounder on the tongue--and of course served at room temp, unlike Bass at home.

i'm not sure about the whole guinness thing. extra cold is extra cold, and it's not my preference. as for difference in the taste, i notice variation from one pub in ireland to another within a few miles range. the cleanliness of the lines and turnover are always a consideration. a good pint of guinness is cool, thick, smooth, more sweet than hopped, with a bit of a tingly finish.

reggie, you sound like you enjoy your beer, and i am willing to bet you that your life could be transformed by a pub crawl through the right pubs with the right people!

[ranitidine]

in the case of beer, i can't agree that it comes down to preference.  my sister tried to argue that with me once, "Look," she said, "Some people really like Budweiser better."  maybe they like it better, but that doesn't make it better.

SB--If you really want to pick a fight with your sister, or maybe open her eyes, tell her one of our house's favorite expressions: "Some things you judge, some things judge you." Of course I have occasion to use that bon mot on she who taught it to me wirh regard to just about any beer. Do you think drinking the live stuff in England or Belgium might really convert her?

[stellabella]

ranitidine--i love it

she and i have drunk many a pint together in london and in ireland. she will drink guinness in ireland, but she sips it, while i gulp it. i think she knows the difference between real ale and everything else, and appreciates it, but she probably feels a need to defend those who don't , since most people we know don't.

i have freely admitted elsewhere that i'll drink an icy cold bottle of rolling rock or corona by the pool [my neighbor's ] on a hot summer afternoon. but if i have a choice of something else, i'll choose something esle.

the sad quality of beer in the States, outside of the occasional really good microbrew, is an oft-lamented fact of living here. one can't really blame us for not knowing the difference, i suppose. but thank god all the same for yuengling and troeg's, etc.

[Niall]

I have heard that each guinness brew is designed to appeal to the country it is being sold in.  I have no proof to back that up though.

Ben

Proof of this can be seen in the alcohol %. In Ireland it is 4.1% alc if memory serves correctly. In Australia in is 4.8%, cos over here less than that is a girls beer.. or something like that.

And there is a definite taste difference in Guinness internationally; A large part of that is the way the pubs keep the taps, lines and gas. Its not too hard to get a crap pint in Ireland. A lot of it is local breweries.

Cold guinness is okay, but not as good as a regular pint poured by my mum.