Some beer mail arrived this week from folks at Guinness, who sort of own this month if a survey of tap handles is any indication. But what arrived was not the stout many will be drinking next week, instead two versions of porter. Of all the beer styles available this is one I'm particularly tough and possibly not the best judge on as I have a hard time with the versions that simply come across as watered down stouts. It's also not a style I drink as much anymore although in my early days of becoming a craft beer drinker stouts and porters were my go-to styles.
With all of those caveats, it's probably best to refer to the information from the company about each. According to Guinness these beers are part of The Brewers Project that brews on a test brewery at St. James's Gate and are based on recipes from their brewers' notes from the late 18th and early 19th century. Dublin Porter is an English Brown Porter, weighing in at a mere 3.8% ABV and described as being "brewed with rich Irish barley malts and Goldings hops to deliver sweet, rich maltiness and light, earthy hop character." The West Indies Porter comes in at a more standard 6% ABV and "is a full-bodied, richly flavored beer with notes of toffee, chocolate, and caramel."
Both beers are available nationally but not at your local bottle shop. If you'd like to try them you'll have to hit up Costco, Sam's Club, Total Wine or BJ's. None of those are regular stops for me so I appreciated the opportunity to try these beers out. And if you'd like to see what I thought, check out my favorite external memory device, Untappd, for my thoughts on both the West Indies and Dublin porters.
Cheers to the weekend and whatever delicious beer is in your glass!
Guinness is rolling out a new product in the U.S., Nitro IPA, in nitrogenated cans and on tap at select bars. The beer is a part of Guinness' The Brewers Project in which six brewers are exploring new beers at a pilot brewery at Dublin's St. James's Gate.
At a preview dinner last night two Guinness employees talked about the beer, noting that the company values balance in their beers. While the beer is brewed with five hop varieties - Admiral to start, Topaz and Celia in the whirlpool, followed by Challenger, Cascade and more Topaz for dry-hopping - they were clear that this is an Irish IPA, not an American IPA. This is a particularly important distinction for hop heads like myself that are used to a strong hop punch from their IPAs. The combination of being an Irish IPA, being served on nitro - which tends to mellow the hop bite of any beer - and being brewed with the same proprietary, 100+ year old yeast strain used in Guinness stouts makes for a beer that one might be more pleased with were it called a Pale Ale instead. It's a simple fact that there are expectations based on style and when a beer doesn't meet that expectation the overall impression may be less than stellar no matter how well made the beer is.
When asked about who the brewers hoped to reach with this beer, they said it wasn't developed with a particular segment of drinkers in mind. I'm certain they're hoping to tap into both the pool of IPA fans they hadn't reached in the past as well as those who are classic Guinness stout fans. Whether each pool will be hooked will be interesting to see as it likely won't be hoppy enough for most IPA fans and perhaps too hoppy for stout fans. Either way, one cannot dispute the visual appeal and silky mouthfeel the nitrogen widget, developed by Guinness in 1988, produces. And at the suggested retail price of $8.99 for a six pack of 11.2oz cans, it is an approachable price point.
Seeing that it was a "dinner" you might be wondering how the beer pairs with food. My overall impression was that it is a good "with food" beer. By that I mean that while the beer didn't pop or make any of the dishes pop, it also didn't distract from, clash with or overpower any of the dishes either. Even the dessert, Guinness Pot Au Creme, which I hoped would be served with stout, remained delicious with the IPA. A sessionable - 5.8% ABV - beer, it is one that could easily consume a few pints of during the course of dinner, or an evening.
