Guinness Golden Ale
Guinness Ltd.

Deliciously smooth, caramel-coloured, malty flavour, despite the name. The archetypal 'amber liquid'.

 

 

500 ml bottle, from a corner shop in London. ABV is 4.5%. Deep golden colour, large white head. Malty and biscuity aroma. Smooth and malty flavour, but unfortunately nearly void of hops.

It's a very easy to drink ale. I think it's good as a thirst quencher on a Summer's day. Does lack a bit of character due to the lack of bit and aftertaste but sometimes that is welcome! This is a beer that I've bought many a time!

One of Guinness' not-a-stout products. Under their Open Gate Brewery label they seem to explore new territories and in fairness, quite successfully. (Recently I've been offered a standard Guinness Draught, it's dreary. Of course, if you like brown water...)

Top: it forms a generous (1" plus) white head and it lasts quite long.

Colour: well, I may be colourblind, but this is not gold by my definitions. It's borderline red ale territory, if we must name a metal which its colour resembles, the answer is copper.

Smell: malty, biscuit notes wrapped into a strong, forgotten wet mop smell. A very thin grapefruit aroma at the background. Not pleasant at all.

Taste: once you fought your way through the unpleasant smells, actually it tastes quite alright. Unfortunately smelling and tasting are connected, so you can guess, it's rather hard to focus on the taste alone.

It doesn't feel as watery as their standard stouts or their milk stout, at least this one has medium body. Carbonation is just enough. The balance is off towards malty tones rather than the hop side. Sweet notes behind (maybe a bit of caramel malts?).

Summary: it could've been a good ( not great or excellent) ale, but the smell completely killed the experience. I will not try this again. That being said, rather this than a Heineken...

The Guinness Rye Pale Ale was million miles better. It's not available anymore, tho... bring it back!!!

L- Pale chestnut. 1Cm white pillowy head, cleard to lacing.
S- This is my 3rd/4th beer tonight and alas I get no smell from this beer [>2.5]
T- Mild in flavout, indistinct. Quite dry.
M-Gassy . Quite dry.
O- Very forgettable; I've no reason to even remember this beer never mind buy it again.
500ml bottle. BB 26/8/19

 

Puuchased in Dublin. Pours clear gold in color with one inch head. Taste is wheat, mineral, and pale malt. Light bodied, sweet, moderate carbonation. Makes for a nice and light, clean sessionable ale.

 

 

 

 

 

12/12/17 impression from a bottle:

More amber than golden in malt character, to be fair. Pretty unremarkable fare.

C / AVERAGE

 

330 ml bottle into pint glass, bottled on 10/6/2016. Pours slightly hazy deep orange/copper/amber color with a 1-2 finger dense cream colored head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of honey, brown sugar, bread dough, toasted biscuit, and nuttiness; with lighter notes of caramel, plum, apricot, apple, herbal, wood, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance of bready malt and light-moderate earthy hop/fruity yeast notes; with solid strength. Taste of honey, brown sugar, bread dough, toasted biscuit, and nuttiness; with lighter notes of caramel, plum, apricot, apple, herbal, wood, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Very mild herbal, woody, grassy bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of honey, brown sugar, bread dough, toasted biscuit, nuttiness, light caramel/fruit, herbal, wood, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Nice robustness and balance of bready malt and light-moderate earthy hop/fruity yeast flavors; with a nice malt/bitterness balance, and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Slightly increasing dryness from bitterness. Fairly clean finishing. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/bready/grainy, and slightly sticky mouthfeel that is nice. Zero warming alcohol as expected of 4.5%. Overall this is a good standard English pale ale. All around good robustness and balance of bready malt and light-moderate earthy hop/fruity yeast flavors; very smooth, clean, and refreshing to drink with the mildly bitter finish. Very flavorful for the low ABV. Clean bready English malt flavors; with restrained hop and yeast presence. Fits the English pale ale style perfectly fine, but comes off underwhelming. Slight touch of diacetyl noticed after I finished the glass, but well within style limits. A nicely enjoyable offering.