What's Your Favorite Irish Stout?

What's your favorite Irish Dry Stout? I tried Beamish and Murphy's back to back tonight and definitely prefer Murphy's. It has a great ester profile that other dry stouts lack.

I voted for guiness, but thats only cause that is the only one I have tried. It is also what I am drinking now.

I like Beamish. It always seems to have a smokiness that makes me happy. I wish it was more widely available on tap.

i just love a good Guinness.

I love all of them, for different reasons. Murphy's has always been a little sweeter, a bit more smooth and full in body. Beamish has a great chocolate character. Guinness Draught is tolerable, but the true classic is definitely Guinness Extra Stout. Big, malty, huge roasted chocolate and coffee flavors with a decent hop profile make it stand out above the rest.

That said, I'll take any of them with a hearty stew and a big quarter of soda bread.

Guiness, but the extra stout, the drought is like water.

Beamish...its so good!

Hey, it's not just me, I like the Murphy's too because it's nice and estery.

Guinness... Tis the mothers milk...

Black Sun Stout - Three Floyds .... sooooo underrated and tasty!

Guinness here and it has to have the Widget!!!! Never had it on tap, but Ireland you are in my future!!!!

Guinness from bottle is poor, from the can is getting there, on tap is pretty good, and murphy's is good stuff.

I wonder how many of you have tasted them all?
I think if you have tasted a proper Beamish then you'll see Guinness for what it is.

I've been lucky enough to drink Guinness in Dublin and Beamish in Cork

orfy said:

I wonder how many of you have tasted them all?
I think if you have tasted a proper Beamish then you'll see Guinness for what it is.

I've been lucky enough to drink Guinness in Dublin and Beamish in Cork

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Lucky SOB
I already voted for Beamish, but really mine is a close second

If i could have Guinness on tap i dont even know if i would have ever started brewing, its the single handed best drink in the world.
In my opinion.

Granted I have never had Beamish on tap, but I'm not a huge fan. I'll take Murphy's over it any day

orfy said:

I wonder how many of you have tasted them all?
I think if you have tasted a proper Beamish then you'll see Guinness for what it is.

I've been lucky enough to drink Guinness in Dublin and Beamish in Cork

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Agreed. I've had Guinness and Beamish on tap in Galway. I can't drink Guinness now in the states after having it in Ireland, but I'll still pick up Beamish if I'm in the mood for a stout and a grand trip down memory lane.

I voted Guinness, only because I would be kicked out of the family had I not. I am a huge Beamish fan as well. I will be in Ireland this April, so I plan to sample as many as I can from the source.

I also really feel the Sly Fox O'Reily Stout is a much better representation on a full flavored stout, however, as it is not brewed in the mother land, I decided not to vote other.

I went to Ireland last April. I was lucky enough to have Guinness in Dublin,
Beamish in Galway and Murphy's in Cork as we drove around the country.

I also had all three at one time in Bunratty. Here is my take.

Guinness was a little thicker and had more of a bite at the end.
Murphy's a little thiner, sweeter finish.
Beamish had a pronounced smokiness to it when consumed side by side.
Which is funny, because I hadnt really noticed that before.

Of the three I would say Murphy's is my favorite, I wouldn't turn down a pint of the others. I actually have Murphy's on tap at home right now. It is oh so good!!!

Anyway for those who are going to Ireland I would recomend a stop by the Porthouse in Dublin. It is on Temple bar. If you like chocolate stouts, they had a chocolate truffel stout that makes you want to cry like a baby.. Man it was tasty.

They also had their own dry irish stout and an Oyster stout that was pretty tasty.

Lastly, the other place that we tried to go, but couldn't get there before they closed was Carlow brewing. They make the Ohara stout, I have had it in the bottle only (no widget) it had a good flavor to it, but I doubt that the bottle does it justice.

We tried to find a couple of other local brewers that we had read about, but they were closed down.

Guiness Island Stout or Foreign extra Stout fo sho'. I gotta have me some sweetness in my stouts.

JoMarky said:

Agreed. I've had Guinness and Beamish on tap in Galway. I can't drink Guinness now in the states after having it in Ireland, but I'll still pick up Beamish if I'm in the mood for a stout and a grand trip down memory lane.

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I've heard people say this before, I just don't know what to say. I did an Ireland trip and 2006, and I had a Guinness at the top of the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. Honestly, what we get here in Arizona is not that terribly different at all.

I'm going get death threats from the Irish for this comment, but the Guinness I had in London in 2004 was noticeably different AND better than what I had at the storehouse in Dublin. At the time, there was a Guinness brewery in London. (puts on flame-retardant suit).

And after all that, my vote goes to Murphy's!

I vote Guinness since thats the only one I have ever tried. I will keep my eye open for the others.

Beamish for me please.

I voted for Guinness based on my experiences in Ireland. That said when in the states I'll take a Beamish it's fresh on draft (menaing counumed often and they cycle through their inventory) over a Guinness.
Ironically, Nyxator, the Guinness I had at the brewery was the crappiest of all the ones I sampled on my trip to Ireland, the ones in the local pubs were best. I think it may have been the "extra cold" they were pimping at the time...

Guinness for me, please, unless I'm at home.
I like my own dry stout better.

This one:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f68/irish-rye-stout-69828/

O'hara's Celtic Stout.

DeathBrewer said:

This one:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f68/irish-rye-stout-69828/

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HIGHLY agreed -- Rye really brings a lot of fresh flavor to dry stouts.

Definately Beamish!

Though having lived near the brewery in Cork for two years may have something to do with my opinion. Spent WAAY to much time and money in and around the brewery, drinking pints and bullsh*tting with some of guys who worked there.

Beamish as Corkians say, is for "old men and protestants" and Murphy's being much sweeter than the latter is more popular with younger people. Guinness is popular all around, especially with the visiting American wanna-be Irish- frat boys who proudly chug their pints while wearing their "Oh goodness, my Guinness" t-shirts.

And while any of the 'trinity' is almost always better in Ireland than in the states, I have had bad pints of Guinness/Beamish/Murphy's all over Ireland. Though when they are fresh and properly poured, there is nothing better on earth. And naturally, being in Ireland drinking an Irish stout sure makes it taste better.

Lastly, if anyone has plans to visit Cork, make sure you stop by the Beamish brewery (Murphy's isnt open to the public, or at least it wasnt). The people at the brewery are EXTREMELY friendly and as long as you don't be an ass and are genuinely interested, you very well may be offered to stay a while and have a few more pints with some of the brewers. The first time I went on the tour I got to stay for 5 free pints and walked away with arm loads of free stuff, just because I made a point to thank the tour director and tell him how much I liked his product.

Oh, and any canned Beamish you have had were not processed at the Brewery itself, as the brewery only has the ability to fill kegs. Instead, the stout is put on trucks and shipped to England (John Smith's brewery in Tadcaster, i think) where it is then put in cans and shipped out. Thus, stick with the stuff in kegs.

Cheers!