Guinness
Guinness (pronounced /ˡgɪn.əs/) is a dry stout that originated in Arthur Guinness's St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin, Ireland. The beer is based upon the porter style that originated in London in the early 1700s. It is one of the most successful beer brands in the world, being exported world wide. The distinctive feature in the flavour is the roasted barley which remains unfermented. For many years a portion of the beer was aged to give a sharp lactic flavour, but Guinness has refused to confirm if this still occurs. The thick creamy head is the result of a nitrogen mix being added during the serving process. It is extremely popular with the Irish and is the best selling alcoholic drink of all time in Ireland, where Guinness & Co. makes almost €2billion annually.
Now available around the world, the brand is heavily associated with Ireland. The parent company has been headquartered in London since 1932 and was later developed into a multi-national alcohol conglomerate and re-named Diageo.
Composition
Guinness stout is made from water, barley malt, hops, and brewers yeast. A portion of the barley is flaked (i.e. steamed and rolled) and roasted to give Guinness its dark-ruby colour and characteristic taste. It is pasteurised and filtered. Despite its reputation as a "meal in a glass", Guinness only contains 198 calories (838 kilojoules) per imperial pint (20oz UK) (1460 kJ/L), fewer than an equal-sized serving of skimmed milk or orange juice and most other non-light beers.
The water used comes from Lady's Well in the Wicklow Mountains. The barley used is Irish-grown.
Draught Guinness and its canned counterpart contain nitrogen (N2) as well as carbon dioxide. Nitrogen is very much less soluble than carbon dioxide, which allows the beer to be put under high pressure without making it fizzy. The high pressure of dissolved gas is required both to enable very small bubbles to be formed and to force the draught beer through fine holes in a plate in the tap, which causes the characteristic "surge" (the widget in cans and bottles achieves the same effect). The perceived smoothness of draught Guinness is due to its low level of carbon dioxide and the creaminess of the head caused by the very fine bubbles that arise from the use of nitrogen and the dispensing method described above. "Original Extra Stout" tastes quite different; it contains only carbon dioxide, causing a more acidic taste.
Contemporary Guinness Draught and Extra Stout are weaker than they were in the 19th century, when they had an original gravity of over 1.070. Foreign Extra Stout and Special Export Stout, with ABV over 7%, are perhaps closest to the original in character.[1]
History
Arthur Guinness started brewing ales initially in Leixlip, then at the St. James's Gate Brewery, Dublin, Ireland from 1759. He signed a 9,000 year lease at £45 per annum for the unused brewery. [5] Ten years later in 1769 Guinness exported their product for the first time, when six and a half barrels were shipped to England.
Although sometimes believed to have originated the stout style of beer, the first use of the word stout in relation to beer was in a letter in the Egerton Manuscript dated 1677, almost 50 years before Arthur Guinness was born. The first use of the word stout in the context of a Guinness beer was their Stout-Porter of 1820.
Guinness brewed their last porter in 1974.
Guinness Stout is also brewed under licence internationally in several countries, including Nigeria[2] and Indonesia[3]. The unfermented but hopped Guinness wort extract is shipped from Dublin and blended with a beer brewed locally.
The Guinness brewery in Park Royal, London closed in 2005. The production of all Guinness sold in the UK was switched to St. James's Gate Brewery Dublin. People in the UK had previously stated that Irish brewed Guinness tasted much better than that brewed in London.
The breweries pioneered several quality control efforts. The brewery employed William Sealy Gosset, who published under the name "Student", and one of his most famous and universally significant contributions is the Student's t-distribution and the even more commonly known Student's t-test.
The Sunday Independent reported on June 17th 2007, that Diageo intends closing the historic St James Gate plant in Dublin and moving to a greenfield site on the outskirts of the city. (P3, main news section, by Daniel McConnell, Sunday Independent, June 17th 2007)News caused some controversy when it was announced. The following day, the Irish Daily Mail ran a follow up story with a double page spread complete with striking images and a detailed history of the plant since 1759.
Initially, Diageo said that any talk of any move was pure speculation but in the face of mounting speculation in the wake of the Sunday Independent article, the company confirmed that they are undergoing a "significant review of its operations". The story was covered on RTE's main evening Six One news by reporter Samantha Libreri.
Guinness and health
Studies show that Guinness can be beneficial to the heart. Researchers found that antioxidant compounds in Guinness, similar to those found in certain fruits and vegetables, are responsible for health benefits because they slow down the deposit of harmful cholesterol on the artery walls. [4]
Varieties
Guinness stout is available in a number of variants and strengths, which include:
- Guinness Draught, sold in kegs — 4.1 to 4.3% alcohol by volume (abv);
- Extra Cold Draught, sold in kegs and put through a super cooler — 4.1 to 4.3% abv;
- Bottled Guinness Draught, which includes a patented "rocket widget" to simulate the nitrogenation in the draught variety — 4.1 to 4.3% abv;
- Canned Guinness Draught, which includes a similar but differently shaped widget — 4.1 to 4.3% abv;
- Guinness Original/Extra Stout — 4.2 or 4.3% abv (Ireland, UK), 4.8% abv (Namibia/Southern Africa), 5% abv (Canada, mainland Europe) and 6% abv (United States, Australia, Japan);
- Guinness Foreign Extra Stout, sold in Ireland, Africa, the Caribbean and Asia — 5% abv (China), 6.5% abv (Jamaica, East Africa), 7.5% abv (Ireland, West Africa, Indonesia, St. Kitts and Nevis) and 8% abv (Malaysia), blended with a small amount of intentionally soured beer to balance the flavour;[5]
- Guinness Foreign Extra Stout Nigeria, uses sorghum in the brewing process instead of barley because of restrictions on barley cultivation. Sold in Nigeria (the third largest and fastest-growing Guinness market in the world) and Great Britain — 7.5% abv;
- Guinness Special Export Stout, sold in Belgium and The Netherlands — 8% abv;
- Guinness Bitter, an English-style bitter beer — 4.4% abv;
- Guinness Extra Smooth, a smoother stout sold in Ghana, Cameroon and Nigeria — 5.5% abv;
- Malta Guinness, a non-alcoholic sweet drink, produced in Nigeria and exported to the UK and Malaysia;
- Guinness Mid-Strength, a low-alcohol stout being test-marketed in Limerick, Ireland from March 2006[6] and Dublin from May 2007[7]— 2.8% abv;
- Guinness Red, a red ale that bears the Guinness name that began test-marketing in Great Britain in February 2007 — 4.2% abv.[8]
- In October 2005, Guinness introduced the Brewhouse Series — a limited-edition collection of draft stouts available for roughly six months each. The first stout in the series was Brew 39, which was released in Dublin from Autumn 2005 until Spring 2006. It had the same alcohol content (abv) as Guinness Draught, used the same gas mix and settled in the same way, but had a slightly different taste.
- In May 2006, the second in the Brewhouse Series was introduced, named Toucan Brew after the famous Guinness Toucan seen in many advertisements for the stout. This beer was said to have a crisper taste due to its triple-hopped brewing process.
- The third of the series — North Star Brew — was released in October 2006. It uses the same ingredients as Guinness Draught but is reported to have a more well-rounded finish due to a slight change in the blend of barley malts.
- In March 2006, Guinness introduced the "surger" in Great Britain. The surger is a plate-like electrical device meant for the home. It sends ultrasonic waves through a Guinness-filled pint glass to recreate the beer's famous "surge and settle" effect. The device works in conjunction with special cans of surger-ready Guinness. Guinness tried out a primitive version of this system in 1977 in New York. The idea was abandoned until 2003, when it began testing the surger in Japanese bars, most of which are too small to accommodate traditional keg-and-tap systems. Since then, the surger has been introduced to bars in Paris, but there is no intention of making it available to the French public.
- Withdrawn Guinness variants include Guinness's Brite Lager, Guinness's Brite Ale, Guinness Light, Guinness XXX Extra Strong Stout, Guinness Cream Stout, Guinness Gold, Guinness Pilsner, Guinness Shandy and Guinness Special Light.
- A brewing byproduct of Guinness, Guinness Yeast Extract (GYE), was produced until the 1950s.
Pouring and serving
Draught Guinness is served cool with the beer line run through a cooler to chill the liquid to the required temperature. Due to the foaming action of the nitrogen it can take a while for the beer to settle as it is poured, often requiring a pause. Guinness has made a virtue of this wait with advertising campaigns such as "good things come to those who wait" and "it takes 119.53 seconds to pour the perfect pint". Some bartenders also draw a simple design, using the head of the tap, such as a shamrock in the head during the slow pour.
Mixed drinks containing Guinness
- Black and Tan or Half and Half - a combination of stout and pale or amber ale, traditionally Guinness and Bass. Sometimes served with a pale lager such as Harp. More often called Half and Half when a pale lager is used. With careful pouring the Guinness settles on the top and the Bass settles to the bottom providing a two-tiered, layered effect.
- Black Velvet - Guinness and champagne in equal quantities.
- Irish Car Bomb - A half-and-half shot of Irish Cream and Irish Whiskey is dropped into a half a pint glass of Guinness.
- Poor Man's Black Velvet - Guinness and cider in equal quantities. Also known as a Crown Float. Commonly known (incorrectly) in America as a Snake Bite.
- Guinness and Black - A pint of Guinness with a dash of blackcurrant cordial. This makes the head of the Guinness go purple.
- Portergaff - Half Guinness and half lemonade (a stout shandy)[citation needed]
- Guiness itself is also known as the "Black Stuff" or "Devil's Nectar", which should not be confused as cocktails.
Sinking bubbles
A long time subject of bar conversations is the Guinness cascade, where the gas bubbles appear to travel downwards in a pint glass of Guinness.[9]
The effect is attributed to drag; bubbles that touch the walls of a glass are slowed in their travel upwards. Bubbles in the centre of the glass are, however, free to rise to the surface, and thus form a rising column of bubbles. The rising bubbles create a current by the entrainment of the surrounding fluid. As beer rises in the center, the beer near the outside of the glass falls. This downward flow pushes the bubbles near the glass towards the bottom. Although the effect occurs in any liquid, it is particularly noticeable in any dark nitrogen stout, as the drink combines dark-coloured liquid and light-coloured bubbles.[10]
Advertising
Guinness uses the harp of Brian Boru, or Trinity College Harp as their trademark. This circa 14th century harp, which is on view at Trinity College, Dublin, has been a symbol of Ireland since the reign of Henry VIII (16th century). Guinness adopted the harp as a logo in 1862; however, it faces left instead of right, as in the coat of arms.
The Guinness harp's direction changed when the new Irish Republic was formed. Government officials wanted to take back the symbol that had become synonymous with Guinness stout and so requested that the brewery stop using the harp. Guinness refused but did agree to mirror the harp image to distance their logo from that of the Republic.[citation needed]
Guinness has a long history of marketing campaigns, from award-winning television commercials to beer mats and posters.
Guinness's iconic stature is partly due to its advertising. The most notable and recognisable series of adverts was created by Benson's advertising, primarily drawn by the artist John Gilroy, in the 1930s and 40s. Benson's created posters that included phrases such as "Guinness for Strength", "Lovely Day for a Guinness", "Guinness Makes You Strong," "My Goodness My Guinness," (or, alternatively, "My Goodness, My Christmas, It's Guinness!") and most famously, "Guinness is Good For You". The posters featured Gilroy's distinctive artwork and more often than not featured animals such as a kangaroo, ostrich, seal, lion, and notably a toucan, which has become as much a symbol of Guinness as the harp. (An advertisement from the 1940s ran with the following jingle: Toucans in their nests agree/Guinness is good for you/Try some today and see/What one or toucan do.) Dorothy L. Sayers, then a copywriter at Benson's, also worked on the campaign; a biography of Sayers notes that she created a sketch of the toucan and wrote several of the adverts in question. Guinness advertising paraphernalia, notably the pastiche booklets illustrated by Ronald Ferns, attracts high prices on the collectible market.[citation needed]
In the late 80's early 90's there was a series of humorous adverts featuring Rutger Hauer.
The mid-1990s campaign, featuring actor Joe McKinney dancing to "Guaglione" by Perez Prado while his pint settled, became a legend in Ireland.
In 2000, Guinness's 1999 advert Surfer[11] was named the best television commercial of all time in a UK poll conducted by The Sunday Times and Channel 4. Surfer was produced by the advertising agency Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO; the advertisement can be downloaded from their website.[12]
Guinness won the 2001 Clio Award as the Advertiser of the Year, citing the work of five separate ad agencies around the world.[13]
In 2003 the Guinness TV campaign featuring Tom Crean won the gold Shark Award at the International Advertising Festival of Ireland[14], while in 2004 their Irish Christmas campaign took a silver Shark[15]. This TV ad has been run every Christmas since 2003 and features pictures of snow falling in places around Ireland, evoking the James Joyce story The Dead, finishing at St. James's Gate Brewery with the line "Even at the home of the black stuff they dream of a white one".
In 2005 their UK commercial won the European Epic Award. In it, three men drink a pint of Guinness, then begin to both walk and evolve backward. Their 'reverse evolution' passes through an ancient homo sapiens, a monkey, a flying lemur, a pangolin, an ichthysaurus and a velociraptor until finally settling on a mud skipper drinking dirty water, which then expresses its disgust at the taste of the stuff, followed by the line "Good Things Come To Those Who Wait". The official name of the ad is "Noitulove" - which is "Evolution" backwards. There are three spin-off versions of this advert, promoting the Extra Cold draught.[citation needed]
Guinness Worldwide Sales
Sales of Guinness in England and Ireland declined 7% in 2006.[16]
Guinness has recently taken the dominant share in the African beer market with its Michael Power advertising campaign.
In 2006, Canada was the fastest growing Guinness draught market in the world and on St. Patrick's Day in 2006, more Guinness was sold in Canada than in Ireland.[17]
Guinness sales in the United States showed a 9% increase.[18]
Merchandising
During Saint Patrick's Day outside Ireland, Guinness merchandise is available in many places that sell the drink. Merchandise includes clothing and hats, often available from behind the bar after a specified number of pints of Guinness have been purchased.
There is an exhibition on Guinness at St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin, called the Guinness Storehouse, where some of the old brewing equipment is on show, as well as old advertising posters.
Cooking
Guinness is often used as an ingredient in cooking, typically in stews or pies or as a base for a batter in which fish is deep fried.
See also
Sources
- Patrick Lynch and John Vaizey - Guinness's Brewery in the Irish Economy: 1759-1876 (1960) Cambridge University Press
- Frederic Mullally - The Silver Salver: The Story of the Guinness Family (1981) Granada, ISBN 0-246-11271-9
- Brian Sibley - The Book Of Guinness Advertising (1985) Guinness Books, ISBN 0-85112-400-3
- Peter Pugh - Is Guinness Good for You: The Bid for Distillers – The Inside Story (1987) Financial Training Publications, ISBN 1-85185-074-0
- Edward Guinness - The Guinness Book of Guinness (1988) Guinness Books
- Michele Guinness - The Guinness Legend: The Changing Fortunes of a Great Family (1988) Hodder and Stoughton General Division, ISBN 0-340-43045-1
- Jonathan Guinness - Requiem for a Family Business (1997) Macmillan Publishing, ISBN 0-333-66191-5
- Derek Wilson - Dark and Light: The Story of the Guinness Family (1998) George Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Ltd., ISBN 0-297-81718-3
- S.R. Dennison and Oliver MacDonagh - Guinness 1886-1939: From Incorporation to the Second World War (1998) Cork University Press, ISBN 1-85918-175-9
- Jim Davies - The Book of Guinness Advertising (1998) Guinness Media Inc., ISBN 0-85112-067-9
- Al Byrne - Guinness Times: My Days in the World’s Most Famous Brewery (1999) Town House, ISBN 1-86059-105-1
- Michele Guinness - The Guinness Spirit: Brewers, Bankers, Ministers and Missionaries (1999) Hodder and Stoughton, ISBN 0-340-72165-0
- Mark Griffiths - Guinness is Guinness: The Colourful Story of a Black and White Brand (2004) Cyan Communications, ISBN 0-9542829-4-9
- Tony Corcoran - The Goodness of Guinness: The Brewery, Its People and the City of Dublin (2005) Liberties Press, ISBN 0-9545335-7-7
References
- ^ Ron Pattinson's The Breweries of Ireland
- ^ http://www.ratebeer.com/Beer/guinness-foreign-extra-stout-(nigerian)/19432/
- ^ http://www.ratebeer.com/Beer/guinness-foreign-extra-stout-(chinese-indonesian)/15943/
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3266819.stm
- ^ Formerly it was blended with beer that soured naturally as a result of fermenting in ancient oak tuns with a Brettanomyces population (see e.g. Protz,R.,The Ale Trail,Eric Dobby Publishing, Kent, 1995. pp174-6.), now with pasteurised beer that has been soured bacterially. (See e.g. [1])
- ^ Test marketed low alcohol Guinness Stout.
- ^ Weaker stout designed to pull Guinness out of a slump.
- ^ Guinness Red in the Sun newspaper.
- ^ Guinness Bubbles FAQ
- ^ BBC article on discovery of the scientific explanation for the sinking bubbles
- ^ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueKvBThaqR4
- ^ Award winning "Surfer" Advert
- ^ Clio Award Press Release
- ^ http://www.iapi.ie/sharks/downloads/winlist03.pdf
- ^ http://www.iapi.ie/sharks/downloads/winlist05.pdf
- ^ Declining England and Ireland sales[2]
- ^ Source:Edmonton Sun[3]
- ^ Dead Link[4]
External links
- Official site
- Guinness on Beeripedia
- Carey & Hildebrand,Improved method of and means for dispensing carbonated liquids from containers, UK Patent 1266351, published 8 March 1972 - the true originating invention behind the modern widget.
- Forage, et al., "Beverage package and a method of packaging a beverage containing gas in solution". United States Patent 4,832,968. May 23, 1989.
- Scientific explanation of Guinness bubble circulation
- RateBeer
- Hands Website
- DrinksMixer.com (Crown Float recipe)