Guinness Draught - Guinness Ltd.

IdrinkBeerinCollege

Oregon

4.73/5  rDev +36.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Enjoyed at the Guinness Factory, in Dublin, Ireland on tap. Also enjoyed at multiple bars in Ireland (Guinness Factory's was the best). This is the best beer I have ever had, hands down. It's like tasting the milk from a goddesses teats. Don't drink Guinness in the United States, it tastes like piss. Trust me, it really DOES taste different in Ireland.

Serving type: on-tap

05-08-2013 00:00:04 | More by IdrinkBeerinCollege

mmmbirra

Italy

3.29/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a pint glass from a 50 cl can. Yes, a full pint. Not that 14.9 oz bs you get stateside.
Looks fantastic. Black, and when held up to a light shows a few red streaks. The classic tan head lingers forever.
The aroma is light, and smells faintly of chocolate. Maybe a hint of coffee, maybe.
The flavor is equally lacking, and again you can pick up a slight bit of chocolate in the background. If you look really hard you can find something resembling roasted barley. The flavors are really nice and pleasant, but they're unfortunately quite muted.
Very creamy, very nice mouthfeel, and for a moment makes you think that this beer isn't as light as it is.

Serving type: nitro-can

04-26-2013 17:41:14 | More by mmmbirra

LXIXME

New Mexico

3.61/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

A rich cream light tan head falls through itself above a super dark brown to black head.

A rich well roasted grain malts aroma that seem to border on slightly burnt.

Creamy well roasted malts taste, you can almost taste the roasted barley itself, with just the slightest hint of hops or something else similar.

A dryish aftertaste with the roasted malts taste lingering on with this full bodied beer.

A have a fond stop for this beer, it was one of the only beers I could find as a young one that wasn't in the mold of Grain Belt, Pabst, Bud, Miller, Coors and the endless list of crap like those.
So in a sense this is the beer that enlightened me to the fact that American light lagers were not the only option and I've been on a quest to try as many different kinds of beers as I can since then.

Serving type: bottle

04-22-2013 22:21:44 | More by LXIXME

Mavigo

Michigan

3.15/5  rDev -9.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

Cracked open three of these suckers and poured them in my 1L stein for a thorough review.

A: Pours a deep dark brown, almost black color with a 1/4 inch tan head with medium amounts of lacing.

S: Smells water like watered down coffee, hints of oats, barley, grains, cream

T: Well this is disappointing, lacking the robustness that I expect from a stout, to me it's like water downed cheap coffee, limited flavors no complexity, it's not horrible but its not good either.

M: Carbonation is lower, so is the flavor, medium bodied, it's kind of thick, just has no flavor

O: Well this might be one of the worst stouts I've ever had. That's not to say this is horrible, it's ok but I'm used to stouts being rich and complex, not like this. I wouldn't have this again.

Serving type: nitro-bottle

04-19-2013 20:56:09 | More by Mavigo

vkv822

Oregon

2.55/5  rDev -26.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 1.75 | overall: 2

12oz : tulip

Deep brown, near black with a foamy, frothy tan head.

Fairly subdued overall with light notes of bittersweet cocoa and lightly roasted malt.

Mouthfeel is briefly creamy but quickly thins out and becomes watery which combined with low carbonation, makes the mouthfeel quite disappointing.

Nothing outright unpleasant or offensive about this beer, but I have absolutely no desire to drink this again as every aspect fell short of expectations.

Serving type: bottle

04-18-2013 08:17:55 | More by vkv822

LiquidAmber

Washington

3.5/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured into an Elysian snifter. Pours pitch black with a very fine, two finger light tan head from the nitro can. Aroma of mild toasted malt and nuts, mildly sweet. Attenuated flavor of light toasted malt, milk chocolate, nuts. Finishes very mild hops and residual malt. Light body without any creaminess I'd expect from the nice head. I enjoy an occasional actual draught Guinness, although it is mild by comparison to the stouts I usually drink, but this tastes like that Guinness slightly watered down. A pleasant Irish dry stout, but very attenuated in flavor. It was a reasonable accompaniment to dinner.

Serving type: nitro-can

04-17-2013 01:05:46 | More by LiquidAmber

TheBrewo

Michigan

3.45/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This beer was served from a bottle at the Sundeck on Aspen Mountain in Aspen, CO. It arrived in a pint glass, showing a solid cola coloring. It held a creamy, two finger tan head, showing nice retention, and leaving spotty lacing around the glass. Carbonation appeared moderate, and no haze or sediment was noted. The aroma gave sweet, freshly baked raisin bread, char roasted malts, dark cherry sweetness, adjuncty grain, metallic tin, and rich toffees. Our first impression was that the flavoring was lighter than you might expect, but decent once you get past the metallics. As we sipped, deeply roasted brown and chocolate malts, warm wheat bread, and metallic yeast started things off. The middle came to a peak with sweeter milkiness, booze, soured brown malts, mild roast, and soured coffee acidity to pull us to the finish. Here medicinal phenols, more alcohol, plastics, warmed lactics, light smokiness, metallics, and bitter, bready yeastiness dominated the last flavors of the sip. The aftertaste breathed of tinny metallics, roast and char, bittered coffee, medicinals, and plum pudding sweetness. The body was medium, and the carbonation was medium. Each sip gave excellent slurp, with good smack, pop, and glug. There was definite drying following the initial creamy coating. The abv was fine, and the beer drank easily.

Overall, the best thing about this beer was the mouthfeel. This was helped by the surprisingly well-retained head, giving big cream and slurp throughout the entire tasting. Otherwise the nose and flavoring, while showing some positive and robust fruitiness, phenols, and char, gave too much on the metallics and the dry, chalky yeastiness. That being said, the nose was better than the flavoring, and everything else just screams “standard”.

Serving type: bottle

04-14-2013 03:40:43 | More by TheBrewo

drmystery

North Carolina

3.39/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.25

poured into my big ol glass.

the appearance looks absolutely gorgeous, a nice change from the orangey cooper IPAs and pale ales ive been having, looks deep black with a ruby hue if held up to the light. amazing thick and creamy head that went from about 2 fingers immediately after pouring to about a quarter inch head that lasted the entire beer. gorgeous looking beer.

not a lot of smell, but i do get hints of roasted malts and a "burnt" smell, like ground coffee beans. its faint, but its there.

the taste is basically the same as the smell-not alot there but its pleasant when you do get a taste. obviously not very hoppy-especially since i do like IPAs and that sort of thing. it tastes like burnt and roasted malts, which is kind of pleasant.

mouthfeel-what a let down. i was expecting it to be more creamy and thicker, but it ended up being thin and watery, hopefully guinness on tap is more creamier and thick. however, it is smooth-its not fizzy or anything. if only it were smooth AND creamy!

overall, its a good beer for a mass produced stout. i think this beer is overhyped, but its still good and drinkable; its underwhelming. it looks good but the taste just cant match the looks. its slightly above average for me-but i would drink it again, especially on tap at the irish pub near my house.

oh well. its still miles ahead of that yellow fizzy stuff.

Serving type: nitro-can

04-13-2013 04:14:48 | More by drmystery

PaleZombie

Arizona

3.38/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 15 oz nitro can into a pint glass.

A - I love the nitro beers and what happens with them in the pour. Volcanic type reaction till the carbonation all reaches the top of the glass. Anyways, Ruby like color, dark but still see through. Nice 2 fingers of extremely creamy head. Excellent lacing on the glass.

S - Mild toasty malts, slight coffee hints. Very mild hint of bittersweet chocolate.

T - Toasty malts hit you up front with some bitter coffee notes and a tad bit of the bittersweet chocolate in the back end. Not to intense on the flavors.

M - Extremely creamy, smooth, fairly light with decent carbonation. Extremely nice feel to this. Almost a velvety feel.

O - I like this but I would usually take something else if it were available. However, is very smooth and easy drinking. Good session beer given the ABV and drink-ability. For the price there are some far better stouts out there. If you want to try this one make sure you get the nitro version or on tap.

Serving type: nitro-can

04-11-2013 21:30:43 | More by PaleZombie

MShirokov

Illinois

4.03/5  rDev +16.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I've tried various things Guinness puts out including the "Foreign" bottles, and I just keep coming back to this one. It just has a very pleasing flavor profile to me. Not too intense, not too "coffee," not too bitter. Just right. It's good in a can, it's good on-tap.
I don't drink stouts often, but I would choose this one over Murphy's and Guinness "Foreign" any day.

Serving type: on-tap

04-06-2013 14:07:49 | More by MShirokov

Mojave_Ted

California

4.48/5  rDev +29.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

This beer is best from a keg. However, the cans are nearly as good. The bottles are no longer good because they do not have the ~*widget*~, which means the nitrogen infusion process is different.

The nitrogen is really what makes this beer unique. I believe the 'ratio' is 30% nitrogen, 70% carbon dioxide. The nitrogen is why the bubbles are tiny and the beer is so smooth.

The smoothness means the beer can be easily pounded. Compared to "light" beers, such as Miller Light or Coors Light, it has ~10 more calories per 12 oz serving. And 5 more carbohydrates (carbs). It actually has less alcohol (4.0% vs 4.2% in Coors Light). In other words, this is pretty near a 'light beer'.

The flavor is mild as well. This is not a heavy, rich or thick beer.

As far as beers go, this is a good beer to have with a meal as it settles well in the stomach. It does not bloat (think Stone IPA).

I absolutely love this beer. I bought the book on Guinness beer. They've been doing this for something like 250 years (can't find my book!). And they got this draught model stout down. There is no other stout like this, even within Guinness' portfolio. And it is very unique overall in the beer world.

One thing I always tell people who ask about Guinness is that when I am in the mood for 'beer', I don't drink Guinness. It has none of the flavors of what I think of in beer, whether that be wheat, hops, bitter, etc. It's something smooth and wonderful to drink.

Serving type: nitro-can

03-29-2013 23:06:33 | More by Mojave_Ted

Shade1951

Pennsylvania

1.3/5  rDev -62.5%
look: 4 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1.25

It's hard for me to believe that I once actually liked this stout. I don't know whether their formula changed, my tastes changed, or some combination.

Pouring from bottle into a standard glass, there seems to be carbonation, and there is even a nice head that lasts a little while. The color is suitably black.

Smell is of black coffee and roasted "stuff," but fairly mild.

Taste - to me, just terrible. Like weak black coffee with other burnt flavors that I can't quite identify. Despite the head, there is almost no carbonation whatsoever. Almost totally flat. This was not an isolated incident. The previous couple of times I've had this over the past 2 or 3 years - same thing. I hadn't tried it again in quite a while, and forgot just how bad it tasted.

There is some creaminess in the mouth - and yet, somehow, it feels watery.

I had this at a restaurant, and I honestly was able to down only about the first 4 ounces before I gave up. My wife sipped it, and wouldn't have any more. My son drank maybe an ounce, made a face, and gave up. We left the restaurant with still at least 6 ounces left in the glass.

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2013 13:51:19 | More by Shade1951

machalel

Australia

2.81/5  rDev -19%
look: 3.75 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Appearance: Pours very dark reddish-brown, almost black, but has a creamy pale tan head. The head is thick and lasts a long time due to the nitrogen bubbles. Reasonably good lacing down the glass, but not as much as I was expecting.

Aroma: Faint 'stout' smell of dark malts with a little roast. Also a hint of apricots.

Taste: Roast barley (although it doesn't stand out), malt (although it doesn't stand out), a slight mineral taste (although it doesn't stand out), and a touch of sourness (although it doesn't stand out).

Mouthfeel: A much lighter body than to be expected, but thickened slightly due to the soft nitrogen carbonation.

Overall: I can't shake the feeling that this world-famous beer (probably the most famous of the stouts?) relies on a combination of marketing and its nitrogen widget for its success. Attempting to disregard the aspects that the nitrogen lends to the beer, it is actually very simple and unimpressive. It's not bad, but it just isn't good.

Serving type: nitro-can

03-27-2013 02:36:42 | More by machalel

estlinska

Arkansas

2.88/5  rDev -17%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

I figured St. Patrick's Day was a good day to finally actually review this one. Poured on nitro-tap at Dugans on 3/17/13. This beer does look very nice in the glass. This is of course one of the more common introduction beers for most people to something other than a macro-lager. It looks wonderfully deep dark with reddish highlights and a very nice white frothy head developing from the creamy pour. The smell just isn't there though. After years of drinking other stouts, this beer just lacks the good nose of a stout. There's some light bread crust smell and maybe some dried grass, but it's not much. The taste, while better than a regular can or regular tap line, is still just average. It's creamy and dry finishing, but very watery overall. The body of the beer is just so wimpy after you drink other stouts. Tastes mostly of brown bread and a little of bitter, dry hops. Not a terrible beer, but not great.

Serving type: nitro-tap

03-19-2013 00:49:46 | More by estlinska

justinkirby

New York

4.9/5  rDev +41.2%
look: 3 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

I just tried this. Heard so many bad things. I'll just say I really liked it. Very flavorful almost nutty. Intense feel. Nice head. Very good. Would definitely drink again. I loved it. Tried twice. Liked better cold. More flavor. Bitter but still good.

Serving type: nitro-can

03-13-2013 23:43:51 | More by justinkirby

timiskin

Ontario (Canada)

3.19/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

On tap at the London Pub in Richmond Hill.

Well poured with a good, firm head and typical Guinness appearance.

Served too cold which would inhibit taste in a more flavourful stout but doesn't seem to harm Guinness overly.

Overall an average Stout. Smooth taste and a decent place to introduce a lager boy to the world of stouts.

Serving type: on-tap

03-12-2013 19:39:53 | More by timiskin

Dbrown144

California

2.83/5  rDev -18.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.75

A: One of the better looking beers. A very dark ruby color, almost black. Had an impressive foam head which rose up quickly.

S: Not much of a smell really. Has a faint smell similar to that of pale lagers. Bready, maybe.

T: The flavor is fairly weak. Only flavor I can really detect is light roasted malt.

M: Really really watery and slippery.

O: Definitely not one of my favorites, but I wouldn't turn one down if someone else was buying.

Serving type: bottle

03-08-2013 07:03:07 | More by Dbrown144

JamesMN

Minnesota

3.2/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.25

From notes.

Appearance: Black but ruby red when held up to the light. Classic fluffy nitro-head which is light brown in color.

Aroma: Very light. Slight sweetness and a hint of molasses.

Taste: Despite the black appearance, Guinness is very light on taste. Hints of roasted chocolate and some dark coffee bitterness on the finish. A bit of a 'soy sauce' flavor. Not much to the palate, just a nice light stout.

Mouthfeel: Between thin and medium in body. Ever so smooth and creamy. High drinkability.

Final Thoughts: Guinness Draught is basically the classic session ale. However, without the nitrogen widget it would probably not be as popular. Would I drink it again? Yes, it's a classic that almost every non craft beer bar has on hand.

Serving type: nitro-bottle

03-07-2013 00:03:00 | More by JamesMN

MikeAAL

Wisconsin

3.45/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

A lot of people love this beer, but I can't just hop on the Guinness bandwagon.

It's a beautiful beer. It pours a dark, black color. The carbonation takes about 5 seconds to come to the top to form a beautiful creamy tan head.

It doesn't have much of a smell. Like alcohol.

It's doesn't have much flavor to speak of. Maybe a little bit of malts and a bit of bready flavor.

It's very watery and carbonated. Despite the high carbonation, it's still very creamy.

Pretty average. Not a lot of flavor. I prefer Murphy's to Guinness.

Serving type: nitro-can

03-05-2013 23:35:56 | More by MikeAAL

PaterMorse

Indiana

3.64/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Today was a quick stout taste test of macro-brews: Guinness Draught, Guinness Extra Stout, and Murphy's Stout.

A: Similar to Murphy's (poured black, etc.), but head a little creamier in color (trending more tan than white, like Murphy's) and less persistent -- lasting longer than most stouts but not as long as Murphy's. Good side stick..

S: Note quite as pleasing as Murphy's -- perhaps a little gutsier, but alos less complex (and Murphy's not complex in the first place). Beer/stout smell, and that's about it. Aroma not as potent/sharp as Extra Stout. A little skunky -- frankly evoking the cross between a urinal and a fraternity basement...

T: Very used to this beer, so hard to describe it -- but that candidly may be because it's relatively non-descript. Not as watery as Murphy's, but still an easy drinker. "Flavors" just not all that prevelant. Roasted barley, and that's about it.

M: Fine. Lite to medium body. Balance if fine, if not a little soft.

O: An easy, if unremarkable, staple.

Repeat? Sure. It's easy, it's known, it's imminently drinkable. In other words, I'd buy for a party and would grab one occasionally for myself when I want an easy-drinker or something simple that doesn't make me think... It's just not that much fun -- more an accompaniment to a good time than an experience itself (like so many other stouts).

Where Ideal? Football game. Fraternity reunon. Any pub -- anytime, anywhere.

Two Words: Non-Descript Staple

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2013 17:22:06 | More by PaterMorse

delta490

Virginia

3.24/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Poured a 14.9 oz. can into an Imperial Pint glass. Deep, deep brown (not quite black) with a thick cappuccino-colored head that last throughout and leaves big lacing on the glass. Aroma has hints of roasted malt (some coffee, but not much) and a little nondescript sweetness. Taste is about the same and the nitro can provides a velvety-smooth mouthfeel. I'll say this is not the best way to have Guinness and that the best I've ever had was in Dublin, both at the brewery and the numerous pubs throughout the town.

Serving type: nitro-can

03-02-2013 09:41:40 | More by delta490

RyanLaCount03

Wisconsin

5/5  rDev +44.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance- Dark brown to black appearance when poured into a glass.

Smell- Light hints of chocolate or coffee much like any stout.

Taste- Very bold flavor that is not too overpowering.

Mouthfeel- It is very smooth and very drinkable.

Love this beer. It is the standard for all stouts,imports, Irish beers and any type of beer for that matter. This is a very good beer for upcoming events such as Saint Patricks Day!

Serving type: on-tap

02-27-2013 04:13:50 | More by RyanLaCount03

emyers

Illinois

2.91/5  rDev -16.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

16 oz. can poured into a Sam Adams perfect pint glass.

Appearance: Say what you will about Guinness, but it looks pretty damn awesome with the cascading nitro bubbles and the exceptionally creamy off-white head that lasts...forever? Color is a very dark ruby brown. Not quite black.

Smell: Aaaand, it's downhill from there. Not much going on. Bready. Some slight hints of roast and caramel, but mostly just bready. Really not a bad smell by any means, there just isn't much of it.

Taste: The sour mash is apparent, and the only thing about the flavor of this beer that attempts to stand out. A lot of bready malt again, with a slight sour twang. What isn't apparent is roasted malt, or chocolate, or coffee, or any of the flavors that I've grown to expect in a stout. Okay, okay, there's SOME roasted malt. But it's remarkably mild. At the end of the day though, this is not a bad tasting beer at all. And unlike other macro beers, it doesn't taste like water. It's flavor won't impress you by any means, but it isn't water.

Mouthfeel: Thin and slippery. The nitro makes it extremely smooth. But it's quite thin. Far too thin.

Overall: This is essentially the only macro beer I ever consider buying. Unfortunately that's about the biggest compliment I can give it....In all fairness though, it's not a bad beer when all's said and done, and on certain occasions I just can't help drinking a few (cough, St. Patrick's Day).

Serving type: can

02-25-2013 03:00:24 | More by emyers

JJKBeerLvr

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Nice dark color with good head. Head was light color.

Smell: Some malt aromas, but not a lot.

Taste: Nice malt flavors, but not much of a hops flavor.

Mouthfeel: Thin, and not as substantial as I like.

Overall: Good, but not great. Will drink casually.

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2013 21:15:01 | More by JJKBeerLvr

acsprouse

South Carolina

4.06/5  rDev +17%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.25

A: pours black with some red peaking through when held to the light. Thick head. Beautiful creamy head.

S: roasted malts, chocolate, some coffee. The nose is lacking but it still smells good.

T: exactly like the nose. When a beer looks this good the taste lets you down. Its a little watery yet its not a bad taste. You get the chocolate. Some coffee notes and the roastiness.

M: creamy yet slightly watery. Its smooth though thanks to being nitro pushed

O: great legacy beer. Simple stout. Its a gateway stout. It was for me. It could be alot better but its not bad. I gotta give this one fairly high ratings. Its a respectable brew. It leads many to better stouts and compared to other mass produces beers this is the top brew. Cheers

Serving type: on-tap

02-21-2013 09:01:35 | More by acsprouse