REVIEW #78: Guinness Special Export (Guinness / St. James' Gate)

Pours somewhere between brown and black with a pillowy tan head that remains throughout drinking; a good start. Strong milk chocolate and vanilla on the nose. Oily and full bodied with immediate woody, phenolic notes along with espresso and dark chocolate. The charry malt bitterness in the finish is luscious. This one is technically a foreign export stout but it has much the same flavour profile as a Russian Imperial. I would argue its much closer to that style than, say, Thornbridge's Saint Petersburg (review 66).

This version of Guinness is brewed in the famous Dublin St. James' Gate brewery specifically for the Benelux and French markets. It is 0.5% (ABV) stronger than their Foreign Extra (review 67). It was originally brewed on commission at the behest of John Martin in 1912 and is now brewed for his descendent Anthony Martin. The Martin's conglomerate distribute a broad range of brands across continental Europe under their banner from Timmerman's and Gordon's (famous for their delicious Scotch ales) to McEwan's, Guinness and Kilkenny. Special Export, due to travel, was the first Guinness to be pasteurised in 1930, 68 years after the process of pasteurisation was proven by Pasteur and Bernard.

• MALTS: ?

• HOPS: ?
• IBU: MID-HIGH
• ABV: 8%`

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REVIEW #67: Guinness Foreign Extra (Guinness / St. James' Gate)

Pours a ruby-tinged black with a head the colour of bourbon biscuit cream. Distinctive sweet chocolate milk aroma with a nutty roast scent. Darkly sweet and creamy up front followed by a semi-astringent roast barley bite and grassy hop. Praline, hazelnut and coffee notes lead to a simultaneously sweet and bitter finish. Much drier than its relation Dragon Stout.

Guinness often brew their Foreign Extra Stout local to the region of the world its sold in. This one however comes from the original Guinness Brewery, St. James' Gate, in Dublin. The brand itself is now owned by corporate drink giant Diageo (who also own Desnoes & Geddes of Jamaica who brew Dragon Stout). Their Foreign Export Stout is an infinitely tastier, more characterful, less creamy affair than the ubiquitous Guinness Original; I just don't trust a stout with a white head!

• MALTS: ?

• HOPS: ?
• IBU: MID-HIGH
• ABV: 7.5%`

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