St. Patrick's Day, 2011
The Irish Pubs around Portland can get a bit crowded on this Holiday. We decided to buy a good sampling of Irish beer and do some tasting on our own.

I have to say our server, Kimberlee, was the best we've ever had. We had steak, champ, salad and soda bread for our meal. All very Irish to start off the evening. The food was all good and the group said they would come back.

Now on to the beer:
Curim Gold (Carlow Brewery) - The bottle labels this as a Celtic Wheat Beer, fruity, aromatic and refreshingly crisp. The group thought there was a hint of a Belgian yeast flavor and the fruit was hard to sort out. One thought was apricot. The beer was okay but nothing special.

Harp Lager (Guinness) - This is an easy drinking light beer. Steve referred to as a Midwest beer with better flavor. It has a bit of extra sweetness to the flavor too.

Smithwick's Irish Ale (Guinness) - This beer was easy to drink too. The group thought of it tasted like a dark version of Harp.

Murphy's Irish Stout - "thinner texture than expected with such a dark color", "plenty drinkabe", "Water with an after taste". These were a few of the quotes. The beer also has noticeable chocolate flavors that are not as pronounced in Guinness. The flavor is a little light at the beginning with lots of flavor at the end.

Guinness Draught - "it is Guinness". Smooth with a "creaminess not found in American stouts."

Guinness Extra Stout - Definitely a completely different beer from the Draught. More carbonated, thicker flavors and a little more bitterness.

Guinness Foreign Extra Stout - This beer is a little thicker, still more flavor and a little more bitterness than the Extra Stout. The roasted barley is also much stronger than in the Extra Stout.

So, how did we rank 'em ,(in order, the top 3) -
Rob - Guinness Draught, Harp, Smithwick's
Scott - Guinness Draught, Harp, Murphy's
Steve - Guinness Draught, Curim, Harp
Ben - Guinness Draught, Harp, Foreign Extra Stout/Curim
Todd - Guinness Draught, Murphy's, Smithwick's

It is no wonder that you can find Guinness all over the world. It is a very smooth, creamy and enjoyable beer to drink all year long.

Cheers,
Todd