Varieties of Guiness

[awbrig]

I wanted a Guiness. Go to my liquor store and now there are at least 3 different but similar kinds.

4 pack tall cans with H2o cartridges or something

6 pack bottles with the same cartridges

6 pack bottles sans cartridges

Do they taste the same or are they different? What to get for the true Irish Pub Guiness like-experience?

Thanks.

Edited April 6, 2003 by awbrig (log)

[Blondie]

The cans or bottle with the nitrogen cartridges will give you the closest approximation of a pint pulled in a pub. I’ve tried the cans and find them acceptable if there’s no draft Guinness available (that’s what I get for living in the boonies). The bottles are newer, but I believe the cartridge is similar to the cans. It’s worth a try. The bottle without the cartridges, the extra stout, is a completely different animal. You’d see the ole fellas holding up the end of the bar in rural Ireland drink it. It’s said to be stronger and hoppier than a creamy draft pint.

When you open the can or bottle with the cartridge, pour it at a 45 deg. angle til the glass is 3/4 full. Wait for it to settle, then pour the rest. Enjoy

[Schielke]

Yes, the extra stout is much hoppier than regular Guinness. It is a completely different animal. I prefer regular Guinness.

Also, the one in the can is designed to be poured into a seperate pint glass, while the bottled is not. You can drink the bottled one straight from the bottle. The pub will always taste better, but I much prefer the bottle to the can.

Ben

[pixelchef]

I've been told that the Guinness served in North America is nothing like what is served in the UK (taste wise). Is that true?

[Niall]

I've been told that the Guinness served in North America is nothing like what is served in the UK (taste wise).  Is that true?

and the Guinness served in the UK is nothing like what is served in Ireland.

I can't comment on the US, but guinness in Australia tastes pretty bad.

[Schielke]

Yep, different formulas based on the region they are selling it in. I guess they try to tailor it to our tastes...

[g.johnson]

There are at least two Guinness breweries: St James Gate, Dublin and Park Royal, London. I don't know if there are different recipes for different locations but Park Royal Guinness is definitely inferior. The bottled stuff is an acquired taste. It's also a live beer with a yeast sediment.

[Wilfrid]

I don't find the draft Guinness served in New York to be much different from that served in London. The difference between draft (which the cartridges try to replicate) and the regular bottled is one of mouthfeel. The regular bottled is fizzier and has a rougher, more bubbly head. I strongly suspect that this is a function of bubble size. The draft, while frothy, is very smooth - not really fizzy at all.

[guajolote]

the Dublin brewery makes 19 variations on the theme, and others are produced in more than 30 countries

fromhttp://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000065.html

[tommy]

wilfrid is right. i'll add that the only good thing about guiness is the mouthfeel and those bubbles. several other beers offer the same mouthfeel and bubbles and are just as good if not better than the irish or the english guiness.

if you have any doubts about this, i'd ask the following: when has the world ever trusted the taste of the irish or the english.

thank you.

so there.

[Wilfrid]

Fancy some Tuna Helper?

Additionally: I think most experts would agree that draft Guinness is a more interesting and complex product than the regular bottled, which is not as distinct from other stouts. But people who prefer and are accustomed to a fizzy beer will like the bottled Guinness better. The misguided perception that there is some logical inconsistency between those two claims explains why eGullet needs a big server.

Edited April 7, 2003 by Wilfrid (log)

[tommy]

But people who prefer and are accustomed to a fizzy beer will like the bottled Guinness better. 

i'm accustomed to flat, stale, overly-cold, american piss-water from a non-charged can, and i like that blonde colored murphy's stuff better than guiness. what does that say?

[Wilfrid]

Stick to wine.

[Joy]

Fancy some Tuna Helper? 

Actually, Mountain Dew is best matched with a young Mountain Dew.

[rstarobi]

The historic reason for the difference between Guinness in Ireland and export Guinness is that Irish beer is/was taxed on alcohol level. Domestic Guinness is brewed with a very low alcohol level to reduce tax costs, whereas export is more alcoholic.

[ctgm]

was once drinking with an engineer who built a Guiness "factory" in Nigeria. All went to plan until they tasted the final product and found it to nothing like "normal" Guiness. Apparently they sorted this out by shipping out a tanker or two from Ireland with the real stuff in and put it in the blend

[guajolote]

was once drinking with an engineer who built a Guiness "factory" in Nigeria. All went to plan until they tasted the final product and found it to nothing like "normal" Guiness. Apparently they sorted this out by shipping out a tanker or two from Ireland with the real stuff in and put it in the blend

I read somewhere that the Guiness in Nigeria was made from sorghum because barley is outlawed.

[ctgm]

I don't doubt you, but why on earth would barley be outlawed in Nigeria

[guajolote]

I don't doubt you, but why on earth would barley be outlawed in Nigeria

I'm not sure about this but I just read that barley and wheat don't grow in Nigeria. It's probably government protectionism which outlawed barley.