Guinness Black Lager
Guinness Ltd.

 

 

 

Yum

The worst beer Guinness ever brewed.
We could not give this stuff away at our Pub.
It smells horrible, tastes horrible and is horrible.
There is nothing good about it.
Any other dark lager is better than this swill.
It tastes like steel wool.
If you pick up some, put it back down.

 

 

From notes 1/24/13: Pours a deep brown appearing to be ebony black with garnet hints when held to the light. The pour produces 1.5 fingers of frothy, somewhat lasting, light tan head that leaves a nice collar with tiny motes and streaks of lace. Aroma is thin being subdued dark roasted/burnt malts, a little chocolate and toffee, a hint of sourness and a faint hint of smoke. Taste is also thin and similar to the nose but more robust. Lightly bitter, very dry and peppery from mid-sip into the finish, declining to a lightly bitter, roast aftertaste. Mouthfeel is medium to heavy bodied and smooth with abundant, spicy amounts of carbonation.

 

 

 

 

It pours a deep black color with a tan head they fade very quickly. The Smell is very faint and I really can not pick up on anything. The taste is of a roasted flavor and watery. Overall it was fair, just a little disappointing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Something about this beer is off putting to me. It kinda tastes like licorice which I hate. The smell is bad as well. Guinness seems to be trying to keep up with the craft wave and making new styles but they've all been whiffs to me. Stick to what got you here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A- Pours a super dark brown cola like color. While it has the color I was hoping for, I am not really impressed with the lack of a head, which storms in upon the pour, but quickly fizzles out....doesn't even leave a ring around the glass. Carbonation is hard to see and the lacing is poor.....not a good start!

S- I am getting burnt malt, 90%+ dark chocolate, rich, deep toffee and I detect some dark dried fruit aromas, like raisins or even fig....its quite nice actually. Overall it reminds me of a less inspiring version of the draught.....

T- The flavors are kind of all over the board, with burnt malt/heavy roasted malt, dark chocolate, black coffee characters and some fruity notes. I find it good....can't say anything bad about it flavor wise, however, it is weak but not unlike other black lagers I've tasted. Good presence on the palate.

M/O- Creamy mouthfeel and light/medium bodied, this is a refreshing black lager that does in fact have the unique character of Guinness. It is highly drinkable and is it the best beer out there?....no....not by a long shot. But I fail to understand the lack of love for this one.....unquestionably because of the large scale name associated with it. I tried it with an old cheddar...quite nice and I recommend giving it a try for sure!

sounds like this is getting some pretty negative write ups. not all the way sure why, as for a european dark lager on a budget, its pretty good, practical, drinkable, and generally fine. a lighter color with a lesser body, like a darker root beer in the glass, but the head is nice. how dark and thick did you expect it to be? i think it fits the style fine, and even has a nice deeper darker roast on it in both nose and taste that makes it somewhat distinct, somewhat obviously a guinness product, and somewhat worthwhile, despite the poor reviews. its a nice beer for cooking, but its also a nice one for drinking, even with a little age on it (forgotten bottle in a basement box), but its pleasant still, smooth, oddly rich for how dry it is, and really well carbonated. a lighter side of dark ale, even with the grain depth. licorice, scorched barley, euro lager yeast with a little oxidation. its about what i expected, but i think its well better than its ratings here. it was never going to change the world, but its a more than passable dark lager. in the right context, this is great beer...

Very disappointed in this beer, I expect far more from Guinness. I found it to be quite lacking in flavor,the smell to be very weak, and the mouth feel to be thin and watery. I would not buy again.

 

 

Bottom line, I've had iced tea with more flavor than this. Very light flavors of roasted grains and molasses. Almost no smell or head. Sad.