Guinness - declining standards

[maddog]

It used to be that when you went to dublin for a match you could be virtually guaranteed pure nectar when you ordered your pint of stout. Now it seems you have to be very careful where you go if you want a good pint.
What mystified me was that on Sunday we were swallowing pints in Tom Mayes and they were top drawer, yet on Monday afternoon they were rotten and no better than you would get in Birmingham. One of the lads with us reckoned that it was down to different grades of Guinness i.e there are 3 different grades. Surely not? Anyone ever heard of this?

[Lecale2]

Never heard of it. I'd be surprise if it were true. With Guinness the brand name is everything and anything that would compromise it wouldn't be touched. I'd say it's down to dirty glasses/pipes in the bar.

[Sideshow Bob]

Its pure muck, how anyone drinks it is beyond me 

[mannix]

its pretty even stuff, dirty or not properly washed glasses are likely or uncleaned lines where you get the dregs of the pipes.
One place in dublin I seen the barman refilling empties brought straight off the tables.
Disgusting and must be illegal.Same place topped up left behind half empty pints of lager and horsed them out to people. I was sober that night otherwisw may never have noticed.

[Lar Naparka]

I used to work in a pub that is just off Thomas Street and was frequented by loads of Guinness workers. I was left in no doubt at all that the black stuff that left the brewery wasn't always up to standard. Remember that the beer is brewed in 'batches; it takes a few days for a batch, or 'brew' to go through the manufacturing cycle.
Any batch that was going through the system in the days after Paddy's Day or any other big holiday stood a fair chance of being affected- you would know the reason if you saw the state of many of my customers when they'd return to work!
I can't honestly say that this still applies today since much of the processes has been automated but there still is a big element of manual control.
Another thing to keep in mind is that production is ramped up coming up to periods of high demand and each batch will not get the usual amount of time at each step along the production line. Cork pubs during the jazz festival or Wexford pubs when the opera session is on are likely to get a big load of substandard brew. The reasoning is that punters are likely to be so tanked up that they won't notice the difference!
If that practice is still around, I'd imagine the pubs around Croker over an All Ireland weekend, get a good dose of shoddy beer as well.
Pubs will also build up extra stock over several weeks and the excess barrels will often be stacked in an open yard where the quality can be affected. Maybe Tom Mayes' staff didn't get around to cleaning the pipes and washing up the glasses properly but the Uncle Arthur just might have been off-standard too.

[Gnevin]

It used to be that when you went to dublin for a match you could be virtually guaranteed pure nectar when you ordered your pint of stout. Now it seems you have to be very careful where you go if you want a good pint.
What mystified me was that on Sunday we were swallowing pints in Tom Mayes and they were top drawer, yet on Monday afternoon they were rotten and no better than you would get in Birmingham. One of the lads with us reckoned that it was down to different grades of Guinness i.e there are 3 different grades. Surely not? Anyone ever heard of this?

I suspect it was you head that had changed from the night before rather than the Guinness.

[maddog]

It used to be that when you went to dublin for a match you could be virtually guaranteed pure nectar when you ordered your pint of stout. Now it seems you have to be very careful where you go if you want a good pint.
What mystified me was that on Sunday we were swallowing pints in Tom Mayes and they were top drawer, yet on Monday afternoon they were rotten and no better than you would get in Birmingham. One of the lads with us reckoned that it was down to different grades of Guinness i.e there are 3 different grades. Surely not? Anyone ever heard of this?

I suspect it was you head that had changed from the night before rather than the Guinness.

Na definetly not, on Sunday it was clinging to the sides of the glass well, a ring for every mouthful, Monday it was going flat very quick and the head on them was yellow rather than creamy white.

[Orior]

It used to be that when you went to dublin for a match you could be virtually guaranteed pure nectar when you ordered your pint of stout. Now it seems you have to be very careful where you go if you want a good pint.
What mystified me was that on Sunday we were swallowing pints in Tom Mayes and they were top drawer, yet on Monday afternoon they were rotten and no better than you would get in Birmingham. One of the lads with us reckoned that it was down to different grades of Guinness i.e there are 3 different grades. Surely not? Anyone ever heard of this?

How did you get a ticket ya bollix!!!!!!!!!!!

[5 Sams]

It used to be that when you went to dublin for a match you could be virtually guaranteed pure nectar when you ordered your pint of stout. Now it seems you have to be very careful where you go if you want a good pint.
What mystified me was that on Sunday we were swallowing pints in Tom Mayes and they were top drawer, yet on Monday afternoon they were rotten and no better than you would get in Birmingham. One of the lads with us reckoned that it was down to different grades of Guinness i.e there are 3 different grades. Surely not? Anyone ever heard of this?

Were they serving food in the pub at lunchtime. I'm convinced that pints from a pub that doesnt do greasy grub such as chips/burgers etc are better. In pubs with grub on the menu the glasses are bound to have some residue from the food which is making the beer go bad...IMHO

[jaykay]

Na definetly not, on Sunday it was clinging to the sides of the glass well, a ring for every mouthful, Monday it was going flat very quick and the head on them was yellow rather than creamy white.

The gas was gone

[mylestheslasher]

Its the same with Smithwicks - what I drink myself. A bad pint of smithwicks is probably the worst thing you could drink. Everytime I'm in Dublin I get really shiity pints of it. My friend thinks it is because it isn't a popular drink in Dublin so the pipes are a bit manky. I am more inclined to think that it is in the pouring of the pint myself. I've been in pubs where one bar man gives me a good pint and the next an atrocious one.
I do know that guiness send people around on spot checks of their pints and  they take the whole pouring, cleaning think very serious as  they see it as a brand issue.

[Louth Exile]

I do know that guiness send people around on spot checks of their pints and  they take the whole pouring, cleaning think very serious as  they see it as a brand issue.

Correct, right down to what glass it is poured in! Must be a tulip glass, big trouble if a pub is found serving it in a stacker pint glass.

Guinness have now got to a stage where the brewing quality control is that tight that any bad pints (either here or abroad) are down to the items listed before (dirty glasses, lines etc.)

I was in Cleary's on Amien St after the match on Sunday and didn't want to have to leave the place, as the Guinness was that good, but by 8.30 the last train had left Connolly with the football crowd and we headed up to Drumconrath for some decent but not memorable pints. Mate of mine was in Mulligans on Saturday night and the stout was as good as ever in there.

[maddog]

It used to be that when you went to dublin for a match you could be virtually guaranteed pure nectar when you ordered your pint of stout. Now it seems you have to be very careful where you go if you want a good pint.
What mystified me was that on Sunday we were swallowing pints in Tom Mayes and they were top drawer, yet on Monday afternoon they were rotten and no better than you would get in Birmingham. One of the lads with us reckoned that it was down to different grades of Guinness i.e there are 3 different grades. Surely not? Anyone ever heard of this?

How did you get a ticket ya bollix!!!!!!!!!!!

Got 2 tickets without even having to look for them and was offered several others on the morning of the game. Didnt seem to be any big panic for them.

[thewingedlady]

I do know that guiness send people around on spot checks of their pints and  they take the whole pouring, cleaning think very serious as  they see it as a brand issue.

Correct, right down to what glass it is poured in! Must be a tulip glass, big trouble if a pub is found serving it in a stacker pint glass.

Guinness have now got to a stage where the brewing quality control is that tight that any bad pints (either here or abroad) are down to the items listed before (dirty glasses, lines etc.)

I was in Cleary's on Amien St after the match on Sunday and didn't want to have to leave the place, as the Guinness was that good, but by 8.30 the last train had left Connolly with the football crowd and we headed up to Drumconrath for some decent but not memorable pints. Mate of mine was in Mulligans on Saturday night and the stout was as good as ever in there.

Best pint of stout in the town. Obviously there are other spots, but Mulligans is consistently the best.

Yeah there's nothing worse than getting a bad pint of stout as guinness drinkers tend to be fussy about it. I think its down to the pubs to be honest. Guinness must be one of the most committed companies towards their quality of product. The biggets problem is of you go to a place where it is not drank that often, the quality tends to be poor. For example, the Harps club and the Golf Club do the best pints in Armagh, and in most other places its mediocre at best. Dry glass is essential as well.

[Candyman]

I do know that guiness send people around on spot checks of their pints and  they take the whole pouring, cleaning think very serious as  they see it as a brand issue.

Correct, right down to what glass it is poured in! Must be a tulip glass, big trouble if a pub is found serving it in a stacker pint glass.

Guinness have now got to a stage where the brewing quality control is that tight that any bad pints (either here or abroad) are down to the items listed before (dirty glasses, lines etc.)

I was in Cleary's on Amien St after the match on Sunday and didn't want to have to leave the place, as the Guinness was that good, but by 8.30 the last train had left Connolly with the football crowd and we headed up to Drumconrath for some decent but not memorable pints. Mate of mine was in Mulligans on Saturday night and the stout was as good as ever in there.

Best pint of stout in the town. Obviously there are other spots, but Mulligans is consistently the best.

Yeah there's nothing worse than getting a bad pint of stout as guinness drinkers tend to be fussy about it. I think its down to the pubs to be honest. Guinness must be one of the most committed companies towards their quality of product. The biggets problem is of you go to a place where it is not drank that often, the quality tends to be poor. For example, the Harps club and the Golf Club do the best pints in Armagh, and in most other places its mediocre at best. Dry glass is essential as well.

You would know alrite.... 
Golf Club???