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14 March
2003
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www.beaconhillwine.com
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Ales & Dry
Stouts: Irish Beer!
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An
understanding and appreciation of the classic beer
styles of Ireland greatly increases the enjoyment and
appreciation of these beers.
ALE:
Tasting Notes
Irish ales, a minor
category, are malt-accented, often with a buttery note (diacetyl),
and are rounded, with a soft but notable fruitiness.
Irish ales are similar to Scottish ales but are a bit
lighter and paler. Hop bitterness is usually low.
ALE:
Ingredients
Ingredients used for
brewing Irish ales include pale malt, along with smaller
portions of crystal malt and roasted barley.
Smithwick’s uses 20% corn syrup – which is used quite
often among brewers of Irish ale – and 3% roasted
barley. The hops used for bitterness are typically
Challenger, Northern Brewer, Northdown, and Target;
Fuggle and Goldings are added for aroma.
DRY STOUT: Tasting
Notes
Ireland is one of the first countries
to brew stout; there it is considered a national
beverage. Ireland’s dry stouts are markedly aromatic,
with rich maltiness and intense hop flavors. Hop
bitterness is medium to high. The beer is extra-dark,
black opaque ale, with low to medium body and a creamy
brown head. The degree of sweetness and dryness will
vary in dry stouts, yet they are all top-fermented and
have the unique and special character of roasted barley,
which produces a slightly roasted (coffee-like) trait.
DRY STOUT:
Ingredients
Ingredients used for brewing stouts
include two-row pale ale malt as the base malt, along
with crystal (80–120ºL), dextrin, chocolate, and black
malts. Dark roasted barley is used, too, which is
critical to the distinctive character of Irish stouts.
Unmalted barley (no more than 10%), cooked or flaked, is
also used. Beamish Stout includes malted wheat to
improve the creaminess of texture and head. Liberal
hopping rates emphasize the dryness of Irish stouts.
DRY STOUT: Brewing
Techniques
Guinness
at its Dublin brewery uses an upward-step infusion
mash. Ingredients will vary based on the market; for
Ireland and several other markets, Guinness uses pale
ale malt, about 25 to 30% flaked barley, and about 10%
roasted barley, with no other grains or sugars. For
Continental Europe, to stay in conformance with the
German Purity Law, Guinness produces an all-malt
version, replacing the flaked barley. Guinness uses
several hop varieties, mainly Goldings. Traditionally,
Guinness used whole hops; today, however, hop pellets
and extract are employed, and in Dublin isomerized
extract is used to adjust bitterness. At the Dublin
plant, Guinness uses a flocculent head-forming ale
yeast, while at the Park Royal Brewery the company uses
a pure ale yeast that is nonflocculent. Bottled
Guinness for Ireland is not pasteurized, whereas for
other markets it is. Draft Guinness for Ireland and
the American markets is flash
pasteurized.
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