12 oz single from Hop City, Atlanta, GA. This beer was not available in the USA until relatively recently (last few months) when Atlanta became one of the test markets before a wider launch across the USA in September of 2010. With all of the various incarnations of this beer being brewed in all parts of the world, I'm pretty sure this review is in the correct place since apparently (according to the bottle at least) this was brewed in Ireland and not the West Indies etc. Pour as expected is...
Notes on beers brewed by
Guinness Ltd.
Smithwick’s
12 oz bottle as part of a six pack. Body is a rather impressive brown/red with an excellent creamy head and some superb lace. Surprisingly good. Nose yields a big malty presence plus a touch of hops - not much, rather a "kiss". The tastes are somewhat uninteresting an neutral, but the back end has a touch of bitterness. The bitterness is fleeting but surprisingly strong. Quite a dry beer (despite the malt emphasis), and this is manifested in the finish which drops quite a profound bitterness...
Guinness 250th Anniversary Stout
$5.00 for the pint at Taco Mac in Douglasville, GA, USA. Maybe a difficult beer to give an objective shake to, given that "normal" Guinness is the inevitable reference point. Pour was jet black but with a much smaller, wispier head than "regular" Guinness. The head looked whiter too. Retention and lace were both poor. Lacked much reverse surge. Much less smooth than regular Guinness and it lacked any kind of silky mouthfeel. Many more bitter notes than I was expecting as well. Thinner feel...
Guinness Extra Stout (Original)
I suppose much of this is redundant as it's been said hundreds (299 to be exact) of times before, but here goes anyway. The classic jet black pour with a suprisingly rocky tan head. Lots of air in the head, making it frothy and not at all dense. Some very substantial and sticky lacing too. Much sweeter than I remember before bothering to take notes and review, with a lack of bitterness and lack of alcohol edge until the very, very end. Smooth (not nitro smooth obviously) but nevertheless very...
Harp Lager
100% forgettable. Simply characterized as a standard lager, slightly above the quality of most North American macro's but lost in that sea of mediocrity that lies between those American domestics and the quality European lagers. Appearance is OK (at least for 30 seconds) before the "at first decent" head dissipates to nothing. The smell? Well, smells like beer!! Slight grainy aroma with alcohol coming through strong. As is the usual case in American bars, the Arctic temperature that it is...
Guinness Draught
Ahh, Guinness. Probably the single most varied experience depending on location and serving type out of any beer worldwide. And that's the problem with this stuff - the search for consistency. In this particular case (the "draught" nitro bottle) we are treated to something that looks like "draught" Guinness but that's about where the similarities end. This stuff has a watered down smoothness and is consequently less heavy the "draught". It means that the taste, mouthfeel and general experience...