What's your favorite Irish Dry Stout?

Awful lot of agreement with you in this thread, wouldn't call that unsophisticated in any way.

 

Found ourselves in a small pub off the beaten path in Dublin. Ended up meeting an older couple, who we chatted with for a while while our wives were out shopping. Such great people.

One thing we learned from them was to watch what Dry Irish Stout (if there were multiple on tap) the locals were drinking. That’s how you knew what was the freshest of that style on tap.

 

I always wonder that, too - and a buddy and I rented and drove a car around the UK for a week (back in the '80s). I just don't remember.

(A quick Google says the pedals are arranged the same left to right - Clutch/Brake/Accel.). It was pretty simple to get used to shifting with one's left hand, too, tho' you wouldn't think so. (And I also forgot if the standard H pattern was the same or reversed).

The hardest part was actually the rear/side view mirrors - having to look UP to the left and DOWN to the right. We thought they should make "US Driver" special rental units with a higher mirror on the driver's door and a lower mirror in the middle on the instrument panel.

As noted, circles (I'm American - they're circles) and intersections took a bit of thought. I remember we'd joke when one guy was driving the other reading the map:
Left Hand Turns = Easy
Right Hand Turns = Hard.

Oh, and crossing the street on foot. Now, you'd think you look both ways just like they taught you in grade school (there was even a public service commercial on TV with a song I can still sing!) but ya kinda put more effort into left first, then right here.

 

Now *that* I definitely remember -- I think they even had specific warning signs.

Helpful after pub crawls!

 

It may not be the right style, but I so do love the Guinness foreign export!

That being said, just having some new locals in the vein of the spirit of the holiday.

Slainte!

 

Well, it isn't so much as "not the right style", as it just doesn't exist (that I've ever heard of).

There is a Foreign Extra and a Special Export (depending on region), so in theory you could make a "half 'n' half" and create your own!

 

yah dat one! the yellow thing

 

aka "The good one".

The one that you'd buy anytime you traveled to one of the regions of the world where it was available --- and any time someone said, "I'm going on vacation to Jamaica." You'd reply "Oh, yeah, cool. Hey, if you think of it and it's not too much trouble, if you see a Guinness Stout labeled FOREIGN EXTRA pick a bottle up for me, will ya?"

But, of course, now that it's sold in the US, you see it and say, "Hmm...FES... maybe next time I'll pick it up..."

 

I saw Chief O’ Neil’s on tv, Bar Rescue I think it was, nice place looks like a great whiskey bar.

 

Old #38.

 

I originally bought the John Martin online for rather large dollars, because of shipping, and not too long ago, the Antwerpen showed up in town. There was a significant time passing from the former to the latter but I will just say, the Antwerpen did not taste the same to me.

Edit: I just noticed that the Extra Stout that I reviewed was the one contract brewed in Canada. Pretty low rating so I need to fix that with the Irish one.

 

St. Murphy

 

Probably not O'Neill's in Chicago, they've been going strong and haven't changed in 20 years. Family owned and the kids are involved now.

 

On no it was Chicago, they highlighted them because they were an example on a well run bar that’s had its shit together. The bar they were fixing was close by.

 

Yeah, I remember a similar reaction I had to a Jamaica-purchased bottle of FES and, a few years later, to the FES that finally returned to the US market. (Can't remember now if the Jamaican FES was brewed in Ireland or under license by Desnoes and Geddes. The bottle's in a box in cellar... but which one?)

Back in the 1950s, the US import (Liverpool bottling) FES's label said "8% Alcohol" and today it's 7.5%.

OK, but which one - Labatt's (Toronto) or Moosehead's (N.B.)?

Yeah, we haven't even discussed the variations within the Guinness stouts of the same brand/type name...

 

Okay, that makes more sense.

Based on web research, looks like the other bar may have been the Abbey Pub, which seems to be going thru some troubles with COVID piling on.

Terrific spot for live music, hope it survives (lotta Guinness poured down my neck there too!).

 

That sounds right.

 

O'Hara's with Murphy's a close second.

 

Never heard of O’Hara’s.

 

Start at the beginning of the thread, it's been mentioned dozens of times. Good stuff.