Does anyone realise that Guinness is not a beer?

Question

If you called guinness a beer over here you would literally be laughed out of the pub.

It is a stout. Not a beer. The difference is enormous. For a start, there's the two part pour.

Grrrrr.

Answer 1

From Guinness' own web site:
"Adored since 1959, it’s the powerful surge and settle that gives GUINNESS® Draught beer its uniqueness. Lovingly poured around the world, GUINNESS® Draught is one of best-selling imported beers in the USA."
Notice they call it beer? Hello?
http://www.guinness.com/us_en/beer/draught/
Look at the title of this section! Beer, Wine, and Spirits are the three types of alcoholic drinks, all drinks fall into one of the above categories. Stout falls under beer, not wine or spirit. It is not titled "Beer, Wine, Spirits and Stouts"
Is Guiness brewed? yes, Is it made from malted barley, hops, water, and yeast? yes....Then it is a beer.
That is like saying Champagne is not a wine it is Champagne. Or that Scotch is not whiskey, it is a Scotch, or, for that matter that a Whiskey is not a spirit. A different style does not mean it is not what it is. It is simply not true. Stout is merely a type of beer. Guiness is known as an "Irish Stout" or "Dry Stout" a type of beer.

From Encyclopedia Brittanica article "types of beer":
"Stouts are stronger versions of mild ale; some, such as milk stouts, contain lactose (milk sugar) as a sweetener..."
From RateBeer on "types of beer: ale"
"Classic Dry Stout
Black opaque. Medium body. Medium to high hop bitterness. Stouts get their flavor from unroasted barley, as opposed to the roasted barley used in porters. What makes a stout a dry stout is the heavy hopping. The stout king, Guinness, has had a heavy influence on this style."
From Wikipedia:
"Beer styles
Ale
Main article: Ale
Ale is beer that is brewed using only top-fermenting yeasts, and is typically fermented at higher temperatures than lager beer (15–23°C, 60–75°F). Ale yeasts at these temperatures produce significant amounts of esters and other secondary flavour and aroma products, and the result is a flavourful beer with a slightly "flowery" or "fruity" aroma resembling but not limited to apple, pear, pineapple, grass, hay, banana, plum or prune.
Principal styles of ale include Barley Wine, Belgian Trippel, Belgian Dubbel, Bitter, Brown Ale, Pale Ale, Porter, STOUT, and Wheat beer."
So under your logic are the following not beer because they have a different style, method, of brewing, way to pour, color or NAME?????:
ALES
Barley Wine
Belgian Ale
Biere de Garde
Belgian Strong Ale
Belgian White (Witbier)
Lambic and Belgian Sour Ale
Saison
Brown Ale
Mild Ale
English-style Pale Ale
India Pale Ale (IPA)
American Pale Ale
American Wheat
German Wheat
English Bitter
English Strong Ale
Scottish Ale
Porter
Sharp (Robust) Porter
Brown (Sweet) Porter
Classic Dry Stout
Sweet Stout/Cream Stout
Imperial Stout
Dusseldorf-style Altbier
Koelsch
LAGERS
Traditional German Bock
Doppelbock
Eisbock
Munich Dunkel
Schwartzbier
Classic German Pilsener
Classic American Pilsener
Bohemian Pilsener
American Lite Lager
American Standard
American Dry
American Cream Ale
American Dark
Vienna
Oktoberfest/Marzen
I guess you would be laughed out asking for a beer anywhere because none of the above are known as "beer."
If I haven't made my point....I give up!

Answer 2

You are incorrect! Guiness is an Irish Stout (aka Dry Stout). All stouts are ales. All ales are beer.

A true statement would be to say "Guinness is not a lager beer".

Beers are either ales or lagers depending on the type of yeast used (and what temperature that type of yeast thrives in). There is a wide range of beer styles in both the ale and lager family ranging from light colored to dark and light bodied to heavy bodied (not necessarily the same). In general, Irish Stouts are very dark, light to medium bodied ales with a pronounced roasted flavor.

FYI: 12 oz of Guiness has less alcohol than 12 oz of Budweiser (but a lot more taste!).

Answer 3

I believe that we are speaking about semantics, rather than definitions. While here in the US (i am assuming that you are not here), we would classify it as a beer. However, I NEVER order a Guinness "beer"..."May I have a Guinness, please?" However, where you are they may have a different way of asking which would not classify it as a beer. It seems that it would be more about culture and semantics. If you came over here and asked for a stout, we would ask you "Well, which one? We have a few." Funny how different cultures can be about the same great drink!

Answer 4

I love people who used Yahoo! answers as Yahoo! statements.........I love it even more when they are incorrect statements. I have worked in the wine and spirit business for a number of years and anyone who throws around their "knowledge" like this guy usually get laugehd right out of the establishment. Guiness is a beer, stout is a type of beer. It is like saying Shiraz is not a type of wine. Learn what you are talking about, Guiness is a stout beer. It has been posted a number of times but it begs repeating that this guy is so off with his statement. The way you pour it has nothing to do with what it is by the way.

Answer 5

well as i saw someone posted already. From what i remember a stout is a kind of beer. (Just like an Ale is) so it is not totally incorrect. And well here (montreal for me) i've heard people talk about the two part pour though i'm sure no one actually uses it lol.

Answer 6

A stout is a type of beer. So calling it a beer is not incorrect. Beer is a beverage with many different varieties under its umbrella. Guinness is a dry stout, which is only one of many different varieties of stout. They are all beer, so you and your pub mates are wrong. So laugh away, you are only making a fool of yourself.

Answer 7

You're stupid. Beers come in two categories, ales and lagers. Stout is a type of ale. Porter is a type of ale. Pilsner is a type of lager. What you're saying is the same as "Poodles are not dogs."

Answer 8

Now I am confused!! From what I gathered in their website, there is such a thing as stout beer.

Answer 9

Sounds to me like the Arrogant Bastard got the best of his tongue....which, by the way, is beer also

Answer 10

Well, I've had beer all over the world..And all I know is American is a let down.