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Article: BEER; How Guinness Got Its Bubbles and Barley -- and That's No Blarney
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- March 8, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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TOASTING ST. PATRICK'S DAYAs St. Patrick's Day approaches, even
the most timid light beer drinkers can be persuaded to hoist a
Guinness Stout.
According to Fergal Murray, Guinness's brewmaster, it's not so
much the flavor but "the ritual of the pour" that reels in new
customers: the maelstrom of tiny bubbles that separates itself into a
deep ruby-colored liquid and tawny head.
The milkshake-like foam results from a mixed-gas (carbon dioxide
and nitrogen) dispense system that Guinness perfected in the late
1950s. The rest we owe to a wily brewmaster perpetrating a tax dodge
on the British crown.