Guinness 250 Anniversary Stout

Before today's entry, I would like to wish everyone a Happy St. Patrick's Day. Please party responsibly.

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, I decided to have a special Guinness: their 250 Anniversary Stout, released last year to honor the 250th anniversary of Arthur Guinness signing a 9000-year lease on a disused brewery in Dublin at St. James' Gate in 1759. Apparently, he had an initial cost of £100 and an annual rent of £45, which makes me wonder if the deal is still on (I'd hope so). So, what better way to celebrate the start of the next 250 years than with the anniversary stout? This marks the third Guinness product I've reviewed, after the Extra Stout and the Jamaican version of the Foreign Extra Stout; I plan to review the Draught when I get a proper pint at the St. James' Gate brewery in May. (Diageo Beer Brands)

Here come the stats:

Guinness 250 Anniversary Stout
BREWERY: Guinness Ltd., Dublin, Ireland
U.S. IMPORTER: Diageo-Guinness USA, Inc., Norwalk, CT
STYLE: Stout
FIRST BREWED: 2009
CALORIES/SERVING: 136.3 per 11.2 oz. bottle
BITTERNESS:
ABV: 5%
ORIGINAL GRAVITY:
MALTS: "Two types"
HOPS: "Triple hops"
SERVING TEMPERATURE:
FOODS TO PAIR WITH:
AWARDS:

I got the first brewed, calories, ABV, malts and hops from an MSNBC article on the beer. I'll probably fire off an e-mail to Guinness or Diageo for the rest, but I won't hold my breath.

The beer, like every other Guinness product I've had, pours black as night into the bottle. I messed up and poured this beer as I would've poured a Guinness Draught, but it turns out I wasn't supposed to; what little head that resulted was tan in color, a little whiter than the other Guinnesses. The aroma was similar to that of Guinness Foreign Extra Stout: a pleasing dark chocolate nose. The taste of the beer was certainly more carbonated and less creamy than the Draught, with a little more malty flavor. That maltiness lingered slightly in the aftertaste, but it wasn't overbearing.

Overall, a well-crafted beer from Guinness, but it doesn't evoke the same memories that the Draught does. This beer is only available for a limited time in the US, Australia, and Singapore (but not Ireland, curiously), and may already be sold out in some locations. (Booze Bros. in Reno, where I grabbed this one, still had 5 after I grabbed mine.)

Sláinte!

Deschutes Obsidian Stout

Coming in at Number 6 on the Clean out the Fridge Countdown Part Deux is another brew from the Deschutes crew: Deschutes Obsidian Stout (for Deschutes' history, see my Black Butte Porter review). This beer, like so many from Bend's first brewery, is named after a nearby landmark, specifically the Newberry National Volcanic Monument, located 13 miles south of Bend, which contains one of the world's largest obsidian flows (over 700 acres), called the Big Obsidian Flow. According to Deschutes' head brewer Brett Porter, Obsidian Stout has a solid following amongst beer drinkers, and is brewed using whole-flower hops, which means that the hops are not in pellet-form and allegedly give off a better aroma and flavor. They must be doing something right, because it has won a myriad of awards over the past decade. If you can, try it at their brewpub; it is served in nitrogenized form, where nitrogen and CO2 are infused into the beer to give it a smoother, creamier taste. (Cascades Volcano Observatory website, Deschutes Obsidian Stout website, phone call with Brett Porter)


Here come the stats:

Deschutes Obsidian Stout
BREWERY: Deschutes Brewery, Bend, OR, USA
STYLE: Stout
FIRST BREWED: 1988
CALORIES/SERVING: 220 per 12 oz. bottle
BITTERNESS: 50
ABV: 6.4%
ORIGINAL GRAVITY: 16° Plato (1065.84)
MALTS: wheat, black barley, roasted barley, carapils, munich, higher-colored British caramel
HOPS: Nugget Willamette northern brewer
SERVING TEMPERATURE: Either room temperature or cold (in the fridge for 1 hour prior to drinking)
FOODS TO PAIR WITH: Chocolate, red meat, shellfish, oysters
AWARDS: A ton...2007 World Beer Awards World's Best Stout (Export) Award, 2007 Readers' Choice Awards, Northwest Brewing News Best Stout Award, 2007 Australian International Beer Awards Gold Medal & Champion Stout Award, 2007 United States Beer Tasting Championship Best of the Pacific Northwest & Grand Champion (Stout Category), 2006 European Beer Star Gold Award (Dry Stout), 2006 Australian International Beer Awards Silver Medal (Stout - Other Category), 2006 North American Beer Awards Silver Medal (Stout - Foreign Stout Category), 2005 World Beer Championships Gold Medal Award Winner, 2005 European Beer Star Gold Award (Stout), 2004 Great American Beer Festival Bronze Medal (Foreign-Style Stout), 2003 Great American Beer Festival Bronze Medal (Foreign-Style Stout), 2003 North American Beer Awards Gold Medal (Foreign Stout Category), 2003 Real Ale Festival (American Stouts) Silver Medal (Individual Category Awards), 2002 World Beer Cup Silver Medal (Foreign-Style Stout), 2002 Real Ale Festival (American Stouts) Bronze Medal (Individual Category Awards), 2001 Real Ale Festival (Bottle-conditioned Beer Awards) Gold Medal (Bottled Stouts), 2001 Real Ale Festival (Bottle-conditioned Beer Awards) Silver Medal (Best of Bottles), 2001 West Coast Brew Fest Silver Medal (Stout Category), 2000 California Brewer's Festival Gold Medal (Foreign Stout Category), 2000 World Beer Cup Silver Medal (Foreign Style Stout), 1999 NABA Competition Gold Medal (Foreign Stout), 1999 Great American Beer Festival Silver Medal (Foreign Stout), 1998 Real Ale Festival Best of Fest (Bottle-Conditioned Beers)

I got the calories, IBUs, ABV, and awards from the Deschutes Obsidian Stout website. The rest came from a phone conversation with head brewer Brett Porter on February 18, 2008. (Another cool guy who called me in the early evening on a holiday to answer my questions. I really appreciated the time he took for some Reno beer blogger.)

Like many stouts I've had, this one poured thick and black, with no light visible on the other side. Despite my best efforts to keep the foamy tan-colored head within the confines of the glass, it almost overflowed. A strong smell of roasted coffee and dark chocolate emitted from the beer, including, I think, a slight hint of smoked wood. The taste was a hoppy roasted coffee with a little carbonation, but it transformed into a strong hoppy finish. The beer was very velvety, and I really wish that I had some chocolate on-hand.

This beer has a lot more flavor than your average Guinness stout. Pick one up at a nearby retailer, or stop by their brewpub the next time you're in Bend (soon to expand to Portland).

Prost!

Hakim Stout

After I got home from a long day's work, my wife, her parents, and I went decided to go to dinner, but we didn't want the usual fare. So we decided to hit up Zagol, Reno's new 2-month-old Ethiopian restaurant, for a taste of something a little different. The food was excellent and the honey wine was delicious. But what really intrigued me was the "Ethiopian beer" listed under the drinks menu. I had a choice between a light and a dark (our waitress didn't know the names offhand), and since I've been in the mood for dark beers, I chose the latter.

What arrived at my table was a 330 cl bottle of Hakim Stout, a beer out of Harar, Ethiopia. It is brewed by the Harar Brewery, which also produces a pale lager named for the town and a non-alcoholic beer that is primarily marketed towards the Muslim population. Apparently, this brewery used to be owned by the Ethiopian government along with three other breweries, but they have since been turned over to the private sector. Also, it's the only brewery that sells abroad, which is why I was able to pick one up in the states; it can also be found in Canada, the Netherlands, and neighboring Djibouti. Not much info exists on Hakim Stout, or of the history of the brewery, although I did find an e-mail form I may have to use to ask for additional information. You can too, as I'll provide the link after this sentence. (Ethiopian Privatization Agency: The Beverages Sector, US Embassy in Ethiopia's 1998 Report on Beer Brewing in Ethiopia, Contact Harar Brewery Share Company)

Since I'm a big language nerd, I noticed the bottle had some Amharic (Ethiopia's language) on it. I transliterated it and it says "Hakīm Stāwt", which is pretty straightforward.


Here come the stats:

Hakim Stout
BREWERY: Harar Brewery Share Co., Harar, Ethiopia
STYLE: Stout
FIRST BREWED:
CALORIES/SERVING:
BITTERNESS:
ABV: 5.5%
ORIGINAL GRAVITY:
MALTS:
HOPS:
SERVING TEMPERATURE:
FOODS TO PAIR WITH: Ethiopian food, I assume
AWARDS:

The brewery, style, and ABV came from the bottle. Maybe I can get an e-mail from Ethiopia soon for the rest.

The first thing I noticed about this beer is that it was a lot lighter in color than most other stouts I've had; it looked more like an amber, as it had a dark amber color, but was slightly translucent. It's head was a tannish color, and it's smell was very fruity. The taste also had a hint of fruit in it, but I noticed a pronounced honey taste in the beer mixed in with its carbonation. It was unlike any stout I've ever tasted. The aftertaste was a strong coffee flavor that was a little bitter, but it faded away over the course of a minute or so.

All in all, a surprisingly good beer. Not a great beer, but a good beer to go with maybe some lamb or beef or injera (spongy bread). Pick one up at Zagol (if you're in the Truckee Meadows) or your favorite Ethiopian or pan-African restaurant.

T'chen chen!

Sierra Nevada Stout

I've been a little under the weather recently. I've had a chest cold that has given me a nasty cough. So if while I'm writing this review I need to turn away to cough, rest assured that I'm not trying to be rude to you. Besides, beer is supposed to have health benefits, so maybe I should've had more beer when I was starting to get sick.

My comeback-of-sorts is Sierra Nevada Stout, another beer from regional brewer Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. While a very brief history can be found on my Summerfest beer review, there are a couple other facts I'd like to throw out. Ken Grossman, being an "avid backpacker," named the brewery for the mountain range of the same name because he loved to hike throughout them. The current brewery opened in 1989 and was expanded to 800,000 barrels a year in 1997. Apparently, the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale wasn't the only beer that was first brewed in 1980; among them was this beer, one of the "original four," which I assume also includes their other year-round brews, Porter and Wheat. Over the past couple months, Sierra Nevada has released two long sought-after beers: their Anniversary Ale, a special beer brewed each anniversary (this year is an IPA), and Harvest Ale, an ale brewed with fresh hops flown down from Yakima, Washington, the same day. (Sierra Nevada About Us webpage, phone call to brewery, Anniversary Ale and Harvest Ale press releases)


Here are the stats:

Sierra Nevada Stout
BREWERY: Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA, USA
FIRST BREWED: 1980
CALORIES/SERVING: 225 per 12 oz. bottle
BITTERNESS: 60 IBU
ABV: 5.8%
ORIGINAL GRAVITY: 16° Plato (1065.84)
MALTS: Two-row Pale, Munich, Caramel, & Black
HOPS: Magnum, Cascade, & Willamette
SERVING TEMPERATURE: 45-50°F (7-10°C)
FOODS TO PAIR WITH: Smoked raw oysters, shellfish, lentil stew
AWARDS: 2000 California State Fair Gold Medal Award Winner (Stout, Sweet & Foreign category)

I got all this information, except the first-brewed, calories per servings, serving temperature, and foods to pair with, from the Sierra Nevada Stout homepage. The rest I got talking to the Sierra Nevada receptionist and Theresa from Customer Support/Quality Assurance on the phone on October 9th, 2007 at 4:15 PDT. Thanks so much for the info!

Like most stouts I've encountered, the head was rather large, a very bubbly but foamy light-tan explosion once the beer hit the bottom of the glass. When it settled, it revealed a solid, dark-brown color that seemed to suck in all the light around it. It had a strong aroma of dark chocolate with a hint of fruit that was pleasant. The taste was a mixture of chocolate, coffee, and burnt (or is that "roasted"?) hops. However, it's the aftertaste that I really didn't like about this beer. Its 60 IBUs came roaring at me in the finish, which in and of itself wasn't a bad thing, but it was a bitter hop flavor, and I didn't really enjoy it.

Hop heads might though, as it seems like a combination of stout and IPA. It's a well-crafted beer with an over-ambitious finish, but don't let it stop you from picking one up if you enjoy a hoppy bite at the end.

Prost!

Guinness Extra Stout

When some of my friends were in town for my wedding (specifically, they were all here as a part of the wedding party), we hit up the local beer store to grab some special brews to enjoy over classic comedies like Old School and, of course, Wedding Crashers. One that we picked up at Booze Brothers was Guinness Extra Stout. Having had Guinness Draught in various forms (never at a pub though...I'm saving that for Ireland), and knowing that the upcoming honeymoon may allow me to pick up the foreign version of this beer in Jamaica, I picked up the domestic (but still imported) version to try and compare. It's been sitting in my fridge for almost two months now, and since I tried Guinness Foreign Extra Stout already, it's time to taste the version we get stateside.

Guinness Extra Stout (or something thereabouts) was first brewed in 1759 at St. James' Gate in Dublin as Guinness East and West India porter by Arthur Guinness. While it is not the exact beer now as it was then, it is the direct ancestor. It became reformulated as Guinness Extra Superior Porter in 1821. There are a couple of interesting notes about this beer, particularly the name change between Britain and the United States; across the pond, it's known as Guinness Original, a more direct link to the East and West India porter of the 18th century. It's also not as strong over there, weighing in at only 4.2% ABV; according to the website, it's 5% ABV over here, though. Wikipedia (always a "trustworthy" source...) lists 4.8% ABV for Namibia and South Africa and 6% for Australia and Japan (it also says the US gets 6% too). What contradicts that last parenthesized statement is that Canada brews all the Guinness Extra Stout sold in the states; it says "Product of Canada" on the bottle (Canada being the home of 5% Guinness). (US website (requires birthday and USA for location), England website (requires birthday and England for location), Wikipedia entry)


Here are the stats:

Guinness Extra Stout
BREWERY: Guinness Ltd., Dublin, Ireland
FIRST BREWED: 1759
CALORIES/SERVING: per 12 oz. bottle
BITTERNESS:
ABV: 5% (though I've seen other sources say up to 8%)
ORIGINAL GRAVITY:
MALTS:
HOPS:
SERVING TEMPERATURE: 54°F (12°C)
FOODS TO PAIR WITH: Oysters (I'll take their word for it)
AWARDS:

As with other Guinness entries, the beer is an opaque black color that seems to absorb all light that attempts to pass near it. It also gives off a coffee-colored head when poured, once again taking up the whole glass with bubbles moving downward, retaining a puffiness once it had compressed. (I did not attempt to pour the perfect pint, or in this case 12 oz.) The aroma that spilled forth from the beer was that of blackened dark chocolate. Its taste was stronger than that of Guinness Foreign Extra Stout, with more hoppiness, I feel, and it tasted like black coffee. While it tasted alright, the taste quickly transitioned to a funky aftertaste.

However, lots of beers have funky aftertastes, and if you want a great stout, than Guinness Extra Stout is a good one to order. Pick one up at your local beer store.

Sláinte!

Guinness Foreign Extra Stout

Once again, I have new blog entries on tap (to Adam: pun intended) for you to enjoy, and it's actually one I wrote tonight. After I wrote those two entries on my notebook on vacation, I got so busy with work and wedding wrap-ups (thank you notes suck to write, by the way) that The Beerocrat fell by the wayside for a little bit. But I'm back, and I have lots of beer in my fridge just begging for a drink. I thought I'd start off with a beer that I bought in Jamaica specifically for this blog.

As my wife and I were traveling Jamaica admiring the striking tropical scenery, I was also keeping my eye out for some interesting beers that they don't have in the states. One that I remember from one of my favorite beer books, Beers of the World by David Kenning, was Guinness Foreign Extra Stout, specifically brewed for Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. So naturally, I was on the lookout for this elusive beer. Finally, on our last day there, we stopped to eat at a Red Stripe brewpub in the international terminal of Montego Bay's international airport, I saw a few bottles of it behind the bar. After telling the bartender that I wanted a cold unopened bottle (to which he gave me a quizzical expression), I had a 275 mL bottle in hand ready to import back into the states.

Now you may be wondering, why does the Caribbean (and Africa and Asia) need a foreign extra stout. The answer is borne out of the same dilemma that gave birth to the India Pale Ale. According to Guinness, it is brewed with extra hops so that it can enjoy an increased shelf life in warmer climates, which include the three areas I mentioned. As a consequence, it also gives the beer a unique kick for a stout while still retaining that distinctive Guinness look and taste. It was first brewed in Dublin and first exported in 1802. Since the 1960s, it has been locally brewed in those warmer climates, including Jamaica, and has gone on to be ridiculously popular; 40% of all Guinness worldwide is the Foreign Extra Stout. Unlike bottles of Guinness Draught, it does not have The Widget in the bottle. (Source; you need to enter your birthday and location to enter the site.)


Here are the stats:

Guinness Foreign Extra Stout
BREWERY: Guinness Ltd., Dublin, Ireland (mine was brewed locally by Desnoes and Geddes, Kingston, Jamaica)
FIRST BREWED: 1802
CALORIES/SERVING:
BITTERNESS:
ABV: 6.5% (Beers of the World says 7.5%)
ORIGINAL GRAVITY:
MALTS:
HOPS:
SERVING TEMPERATURE: 64°F (18°C)
FOODS TO PAIR WITH: Sausages and mashed potatoes
AWARDS:

These stats come from a combination of Beers of the World, the Guinness website (link above), and what it says on the bottle. More info may come from a phone call to a Guinness brewery in the states.

As it is a trademark of Guinness beers, the first thing I noticed was the fact that the head took up most of the glass when I first poured it. It was a nice, fluffy, chocolate-tan head where the bubbles were moving downwards...unlike other beers I've had. The foam also had a habit of staying for a really long time; looking at my glass now, I see that the head has finally reformed into those last few delectable drops. The aroma of the beer was a combination of character and a whiff of chocolate that is very pleasing to the nose. The beer itself had Guinness' trademark solid black color and a nice velvety flavor to it with a chocolatey coffee taste that was a little bit more bitter than the usual stout (due to the extra hops added for the climate). The finish was like a liquefied dark chocolate combined with hops and just a touch of sweetness.

In short, I'm glad that this bottle survived the journey from Jamaica back to Reno. I only wish I could pick this up at my local store. Oh well, I have my bottle of regular Guinness Extra Stout waiting for me soon, so I guess I can manage. For now.

Sláinte!