The Good Stuff

In 1752, Arthur Guinness is left £100 (about $147 U.S.) in the will of Archbishop Price. Three years later he sets up business as a brewer in Leixlip, County Kildare, just 17 kilometers (about 11 miles) from Dublin. The rest is history.

During the air raids of WWII, Export Bottlers Ltd. in Liverpool was destroyed by German bombs. The factory was hastily rebuilt, and the patched-up factory continues operating until 1957.

Porter is also referred to as “plain,” as referenced in the famous refrain of Flann O’Brien’s poem “The Workman’s Friend”: “A pint of plain is your only man.”

Before 1939, if a Guinness brewer wished to marry a Catholic, his resignation was requested. That changed by the 1960s. (A Bottle of Guinness Please)

The “perfect pint” of draught Guinness is the product of a “double pour,” which according to the company should take 119.5 seconds.

Although Guinness may appear to be black, it is officially a very dark shade of ruby.

40% of Guinness sales come from Africa.

At least 10 million glasses of Guinness are enjoyed every day.

Despite its reputation as a “meal in a glass,” Guinness only contains 198 calories per imperial pint—fewer than skimmed milk, orange juice and most other non-light beers.

In the 1920s the slogan “Guinness is Good for You” debuted when people told the company they felt good after their pint. Advertisements for alcoholic drinks that imply improved physical performance or enhanced personal qualities are now prohibited in Ireland.

“Stout” originally referred to a beer’s strength but eventually shifted meaning toward body and color. (The World Guide to Beer)

The Guinness harp motif is modeled on the Trinity College harp of the Irish text Cogad Gáedel re Gallaib.

Finally in 1840 a shipment of Guinness is sent to the states via New York.

Guinness stout is made from water, barley, roast malt extract, hops and brewer’s yeast.