Black and almost impenetrable by light, stout has a deep history rooted in Europe. Most notably recognized across the world as a cascading pint of Guinness, stout is eternally linked to the famous brewery from St James Gate, Dublin.
In 1759, Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000 year lease on an obsolete brewery with just a handful of years under his belt as a brewer. At the time Ireland was under English rule, and imported English beers were taxed far less heavily than local Irish beers. Guinness held out until the tax laws were changed, giving him a fair chance at both the Irish market and the overseas trade. He then acquired a skilled porter brewer from London and soon was exporting Guinness Export Porter in the 1800s to as far away as the Caribbean.
Stout is a descendent of Porter. In the late 18th Century brewers began brewing a heartier version called stout porter. After time the word “porter†was left behind and the beer simply became known as stout. In 1817, Daniel Wheeler, created his patented roasting machine that allowed complete control of roasting malts and barley to create the distinct high roast of the beers to come. Capitalizing on this new invention Guinness started using the uniquely high roasted malts in their beers to create the famous espresso-like character that sets their beers apart. While Guinness was highly successful, it soon gathered competition from Beamish, Crawford, and most notably Murphy’s.
Want to read more? Please click…