I always used to like Guinness Stout. This was back in the days when they didn't have bottled/canned pseudo-draft beer, nor widgets. I always hated the "draft" guinness bottled/canned. I didn't much like draft guinness at bars in NYC.
Nowadays I don't much like the traditional bottled Guinness either. It's identical to Baltika #6, and I suspect that the guinness bottles I grew up with would have blown #6 away.
Totally subjective? Or can the real experts here back me up or refute me?
As has been noted here several (thousand) times, there is no ONE Guinness Stout. There are, in fact, IIRC, 17 different Guinness Stouts (including some bottled versions that were once bottle conditioned, and some draught that is or isn't pasteurized).
In the US, what is often simply referred to as "bottled" Guinness (or, at least, WAS so called before the "widget" bottled was introduced) was Guinness Extra Stout. A different beer, with a different alcohol rate and different gravity that the stuff you'll find on tap, or widget-ed. The Extra Stout shipped to America was different that the Extra Stout in Ireland and the UK- and nowadays it's not even Irish Guinness, but a contract brew from Canada's Labatt.
The beer you don't like is actually NAMED Guinness Draught Stout.
Guinness, for some reason (maybe because it simply LOOKS/TASTES so different that the majority of beers around the world) has always seemed to have more myths/rumors/urban legends around it. (Today, in the US some will say, conspiratorially, that ALL Guinness is coming from Canada, for instance.)
I've never found a nice website that explains all the Guinness products- the official site is very confusing- one has to click different countries, and get a separate website to get different descriptions which are somewhat confusing- From the (admittedly not very forthcoming- they don't even *mention* Labatt or Canadian brewed) Guinness website: "Today the Dublin brewery produces GUINNESS® Draught for Ireland, the UK, Europe and the United States."
On the Canadian version of the site, the same page says only "Lovingly poured around the world, GUINNESS® Draught is Ireland’s best-selling beer."
A "fan/collector" site that looked real good required payment to view certain pages.
Don't know Baltika #6 (I've seen the brand around and probably had the lager- I'm taking it that #6 is a "baltic porter" of some kind?. I just picked up a case of Zywiec Porter (1/2 liter bottles, 9.5% alc.) so I like the style- will look for it) but one must also remember that there's no one "stout" style, but many different stouts (milk/sweet stout, dry stout, oatmeal stout, imperial stout) and, depending on the brewer, there are certainly porters that are stronger (in flavor and alcohol content) than other's stouts. Indeed, there were once beers that were labeled "Stout Porter" (Guinness had one, IIRC).
I have never seen Extra Stout on tap in USA. Where I live (Milwaukee), the only place that has a proper tap of Guinness is County Clare Pub.
Dan
Michael Jackson reviewed Grim Reaper's Mortality Stout in a recent issue of All About Beer magazine. One of his comments was that Mortality Stout reminded him of what bottled Guinness Extra Stout
*used* to be like. I don't know if you've tried Mortality stout, but it is a rich, thick, chocolatey-tasting beer -- far richer, tastier, and frankly better than Guinness Extra Stout.I also once read a comment from the late Bert Grant that he intended his Grant's Imperial Stout to be similar to what bottled Guinness used to be. Grant's IS is light for an imperial stout, but, again, far tastier than bottled Guinness. Also, there is quite a bit of similarity between Grant's stout and Mortality stout.
Just curious what you guys like about it. I have never cared for it. My previous comment wasnt meant to insult anyone its just guniess and blue moon are two beers I will always hate.
As always, this newsgroup has more information on the tip of its tongue than anybody but the omniscient Usenet Oracle.
I shall look for Mortality Stout and Grant's Imperial Stout. Thanks, folks!
Don't know if you're referring to something I wrote, but I never meant to imply that GES is/was available as draught product. Sorry if you got that from my post.
Where I live (New Jersey), Guinness just about any place that has more than 3 or 4 taps has Guinness (so that would include most chain restaurants). I'm not about to suggest that I know who has a "proter tap"- it's not my first choice- but many serve it too cold (encouraged by Guinness promotion people).
Sure. While we're on stouts, I want to sing the praises of Ipswich Oatmeal Stout one more time. It's everything I want from a stout and then some; it is a beer to contemplate. I used to think Shakespeare Stout was the best stout in the 6% range, but Ipswich kicks its ass.
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