Guinness 200th Anniversary Export Stout
Apparently, October 16th, 1817 marks the first arrival of a Guinness-brewed stout on American shores (South Carolina, specifically). In celebration of the 200th anniversary of the occasion, the brand will be releasing a variant of their export stout, as well as their flagship Guinness Draught in a limited-edition can design. This celebratory export stout utilizes a recipe inspired by that first brew from 1817 that includes black patent malt.
Once sniff of 200th Anniversary Export Stout and you know it’s a Guinness product, as that tell-tale trait that all of their stouts encompass wafts smoothly from the surface with hints of earthy cocoa, a solid roastiness, touch of caramel and coffee. Those same traits are also present once the 6% ABV stout hits the tongue. There’s a robust nature to the brew that is more pronounced than the brewery’s standard export stout, as a light-to-moderate hop bite joins in on the rustic character. The beer isn’t overly complex, but the array of flavors within it’s near opaque depths still manage to tantalize and swirl around one another.
I’m a fan of Guinness’ Export Stout and this 200th anniversary variant is just as tasty, if not more so. I do enjoy the more robust, slightly acrid roast coffee character that comes through as the hints of earthy cocoa linger with caramel and toffee notes. It’s not a big beer by any means, nor one that is going to wreck the tastebuds, so you can sit back and enjoy a couple pints as the Fall weather takes hold.
This is a review of a promotional sample.