Mixing Guinness Foreign Extra Stout with Guinness Draught

hatrickpatrick

Hello all

Basically being a bit of a mad eejit at the moment and contemplating doing something a little bizarre. I'm a huge fan of the Foreign Extra Guinness at the moment, but the one thing I really missis the thick head caused by the widget in a can of stout, when poured. So what I've been thinking of is, what would happen if I poured a bottle of FES into a glass and then filled the last bit of the glass with a bit of draught from a can, thereby potentially creating all the epic of a draught head with all the epic of a FES body?

Or have I lost the head completely (pun intended) and become a complete head case (pun also intended)?

>_>
<_<

*runs*

BMJD

DO NOT DO THIS

mods please lock this before we all die!!!!!!!!!!!!!

poitinstill

? try it and tell us if you survive ? i'd say that must be the maddest thing ive ever heard. if it doesnt work out you will be ;
a) dead
b) bankrupt
c) a deceased hero

Son0vagun

Sounds pointless to me.

However Evil Twin Brewery do two beers that they recommend mixing together. Ying and Yang they're called! I haven't done it yet!

Ravelleman

Give it a go and see what happens.

There are a number of bottled, full-bodied stouts that come in nitro versions - most notably Left Hand Milk Stout Nitro, which is really very good.

gucci

i have an image of the OP looking like this before doing the experiment (cannot inbed the link as Im on the mobile!)
http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/979NuYD4itU/hqdefault.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3D979NuYD4itU&h=360&w=480&tbnid=VnnDdR3FGh6T1M:&zoom=1&q=dangerous+Brian&docid=T2-wC4y2KjlY6M&ei=bAPFU6XCM8T_ygPbl4HwAw&tbm=isch&ved=0CCAQMygBMAE

OldMrBrennan83

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Insect Overlord

Patww79 wrote: »

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It's delicious, that's what it is!

Thundercats Ho

When I was younger, the auld fellas would drink what they called a 'top up'
It was 3/4 of a pint (draught), with a bottle of regular guinness extra (for topping up).
I've had it a few times, but thought it was a bit of a gimmick tbh.

hatrickpatrick

Ended up trying this last night (hide yo kids, hide yo wife), some of the best Guinness I've ever had and will definitely be doing it again
Basic idea is to do the usual half pour of draught, then fill the glass almost to the top with Fes, and then a little draught on top to get more of a head. Recommend it to everyone, tasted a lot nicer than regular draught (and that's from someone who loves the ordinary draught to begin with)

Forgive the stout ignorance, but what exactly does "nitro" mean in this context?

BeerNut

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

Forgive the stout ignorance, but what exactly does "nitro" mean in this context?

It's how the thick head in the widget or on draught is achieved: the gas mix is high in nitrogen which is what creates the thick stable foam.

Left Hand do a version of their Milk Stout with nitrogen dissolved in but it doesn't work as well as a widget for creating the draught-like head.

rubadub

I am surprised at the reaction of some posters, surely everybody has heard of people getting a guinness head on a smithwicks before, so this is not much different, acutally this should be considered more normal.

I know a guy who used to have bottles or cans of guinness in his fridge to top up the shortfall of a 500ml draught can going into a pint glass -to get the head to the top of the glass.

Ravelleman

rubadub wrote: »

I am surprised at the reaction of some posters, surely everybody has heard of people getting a guinness head on a smithwicks before, so this is not much different, acutally this should be considered more normal.

I thought Kilkenny was Smithwicks with a nitro head.

BeerNut

Ravelleman wrote: »

I thought Kilkenny was Smithwicks with a nitro head.

Nope. It's a different strength for one thing.

Ravelleman

BeerNut wrote: »

Nope. It's a different strength for one thing.

Didn't do my research. They seem incredibly similar though.

Ravelleman

The higher strength is presumably a reflection of the fact that it's mainly exported.

OldMrBrennan83

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loyatemu

Ravelleman wrote: »

I thought Kilkenny was Smithwicks with a nitro head.

doesn't Smithwicks now have a nitro head (since a couple of years back)?

BeerNut

I think all beers have a proportion of nitrogen in the dispense mix now, but Smithwick's isn't as fully nitrogenated as Guinness or Kilkenny.

Losty Dublin

A couple of years ago I tried a bottle of Molly's stout and although tasty I found it a bit lacking in life. I asked a barman to put a tiny drop of keg Guinness on top and I have to say, I found that it made Molly's a lot more enjoyable.

drumswan

BeerNut wrote: »

I think all beers have a proportion of nitrogen in the dispense mix now, but Smithwick's isn't as fully nitrogenated as Guinness or Kilkenny.

All beers?

Geuze

Patww79 wrote: »

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This thread may help explain:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056742252


There's

(1) draught
(2) Extra Stout
(3) Foreign Extra Stout
(4) Special Export stout

SteeveeDee

BeerNut wrote: »

I think all beers have a proportion of nitrogen in the dispense mix now, but Smithwick's isn't as fully nitrogenated as Guinness or Kilkenny.

That's quite interesting, I never would have thought that.

SteeveeDee

rubadub wrote: »

I am surprised at the reaction of some posters, surely everybody has heard of people getting a guinness head on a smithwicks before, so this is not much different, acutally this should be considered more normal.

You'd call this a pint of "special" in Mayo, or at least that's what you'd ask for! And you're right it is quite normal.

OldMrBrennan83

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drumswan

FES is fairly widely available, Superquinn carry it.

Havent seen SES on sale here since I moved back to Ireland, I usually pick up a few bottles in France when Im over.

OldMrBrennan83

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irish_goat

drumswan wrote: »

All beers?

Yep.

Beer gas in Ireland comes in 50/50(ales/lagers) or 25/75(stout). I assume though that this is more to do with safety reasons/dispense reasons rather than with the aim of filling the beer with nitrogen (which would have to happen in the brewery I think).

sofireland

Son0vagun wrote: »

Sounds pointless to me.

However Evil Twin Brewery do two beers that they recommend mixing together. Ying and Yang they're called! I haven't done it yet!

Oh the old Black and Tan, and Imp IPA and Imp Stout - 10% ABV - Pure rocket fuel, but emminently drinkable.

Brú do a nitro bottled stout - its very rare - they're doing another batch soon - 1st European Craft brewery to do it as far as I know. Might be a few bottles knocking round some indie off licences / Supervalu.

Pour Hard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSMZBX9PABU

I'm intrigued to try this blend of FES and Guinness Draught - had the Special Export recently, now that is a beer and a half!

BaZmO*

Son0vagun wrote: »

However Evil Twin Brewery do two beers that they recommend mixing together. Ying and Yang they're called! I haven't done it yet!

I did this recently and was sceptical, but the mix was better than the individual beers imo.

rubadub wrote: »

I am surprised at the reaction of some posters, surely everybody has heard of people getting a guinness head on a smithwicks before, so this is not much different, acutally this should be considered more normal.

I think most of the original comments were tongue in cheek.

sofireland wrote: »

Brú do a nitro bottled stout - its very rare - they're doing another batch soon - 1st European Craft brewery to do it as far as I know. Might be a few bottles knocking round some indie off licences / Supervalu.

Pour Hard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSMZBX9PABU

In my experience, and in the experience of a few on here, this doesn't work, which is a pity because the beer is actually quite nice.

drumswan

It worked for me

sofireland

I know there was one or two that didn't have that - I know there was a massive difference if the bottle was cold, or just off the shelf.
Few bottles i had worked really well for me.

BaZmO*

Hmmm, where were you guys in the thread about it!! :P

Must give it another go.

Lovely Bloke

Ravelleman wrote: »

I thought Kilkenny was Smithwicks with a nitro head.

Weird, a foreign barman in a foreign bar, 2 years ago, made pretty much the same comment to me.

lmtduffy

Baldy Conscience wrote: »

Weird, a foreign barman in a foreign bar, 2 years ago, made pretty much the same comment to me.

For reasons that escape me, in some parts of Europe Smithwicks is marketed and sold as Kilkenny- legitimately I might add.

Could be the cause of the confusion.

Ravelleman

Baldy Conscience wrote: »

Weird, a foreign barman in a foreign bar, 2 years ago, made pretty much the same comment to me.

Can anyone confirm if there's any discernible difference in taste? The strength may be different but there are several strengths of Heineken available and they're all called Heineken regardless.

srfc d16

Ravelleman wrote: »

Can anyone confirm if there's any discernible difference in taste? The strength may be different but there are several strengths of Heineken available and they're all called Heineken regardless.

I think there is a definite difference in taste between the 2. Personally i much prefer Smithwicks

rubadub

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithwick's#Variations

Kilkenny Cream Ale is similar to Smithwick's Draught; however, it has a cream head similar to Guinness, and it has a stronger and more bitter taste than Smithwick's. The Kilkenny name was originally used during the '80s and '90s to market a stronger version of Smithwick's for the European and Canadian market due to difficulty in pronunciation of the word "Smithwick's", but it now refers to a similar yet distinctly different beer

A whole secton on pronouncing it
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithwick's#Regional_pronunciation

Ravelleman

I guess I'll believe it when I taste it. Which will probably be never, I won't lie.

Insect Overlord

There's a bar in Berlin that sells the stuff. It's named, imaginatively enough, Kilkenny Irish Bar. I went for a Guinness myself. :P

OldMrBrennan83

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