NO OTHER MISSIONARY has such a fun reputation. St Patrick helped bring Christianity to Ireland. In return, on March 17th the country’s patron saint is feted with processions, pipes—and a lot of Guinness. Around 13m pints of the Irish stout, the de facto national beverage, are consumed globally every year in the celebrations.
Thanks to St Patrick’s Day and the Six Nations—a European rugby tournament that Guinness sponsors—March has always been the high point of the year for the beer. But recently it has transcended seasonal patterns and associations with sporty men. A 250-year-old beverage is cool again, so much so that Netflix is making a drama about the history of the brewery.
In Britain in the second half of 2024 sales of beer by volume declined by 1%, according to CGA, a research firm; sales of Guinness, meanwhile, shot up by 21%. Holiday socialising caused “unprecedented demand” in December, says Grainne Wafer of Diageo, Guinness’s parent company. An additional 4.5m pints were sold that month compared with the previous March. Facing shortages, some establishments rationed it.
Guinness appeals to an age of “mindful drinking”. It is less alcoholic and calorific than many beers and less fizzy than a lager, so you do not feel as bloated after a pint. As Jeffrey Pilcher notes in “Hopped Up”, a new history of beer, Guinness has long marketed itself as a fortifying brew. In the 20th century its advertising slogans included “Guinness Is Good For You” and “Guinness For Strength”. Pregnant women were sometimes prescribed it in the (erroneous) belief that it contained lots of iron.
Changing palates have further bolstered Guinness’s popularity. The smoky tang provided by roasted barley appeals to those accustomed to “more bitter, intense flavours” in products such as coffee or dark chocolate, says Garrett Oliver, the editor of “The Oxford Companion to Beer”.
Social media have played an important role in making Guinness a fashionable tipple, even among women. (Diageo says the number of female Guinness drinkers is up 50% year on year.) With its velvety, dark hue and creamy foam, the drink has a distinct visual identity, which makes it instantly recognisable. Fans have devised a pub game called “Splitting the G”, which has become a trend online. (The goal is to sip enough stout so that the liquid lines up with the horizontal line on the “G” of the logo printed on the glass.)
During the pandemic, Guinness released an ultrasonic device that allows drinkers to pour something akin to a pub-quality pint from a can at home. Recognising the trend towards abstemiousness, Guinness created a 0% stout in 2021, which has proved popular. More than two-and-a-half centuries after Arthur Guinness set up shop in Dublin, such innovations are keeping the brewery in the black. ■
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