Guinness Special Export (Belgian version)

Brewed by St. James’s Gate (Diageo)
Style: Foreign Stout
Dublin, Ireland

bottle, ordered a while ago from belgianshop. Black with a thick khaki head. Sweet roasted malt and coffee aroma. Fairly big roasted malt flavor, some bitter chocolare in the finish. very tasty; easy to drink. As soon as i popped the cap, i realized that i should have sampled this side-by-side with the North American version. Maybe next time...

Black in colour with a thick dark beige head. Aroma is dominated by the strong roasted malt. The malty flavour is complemented by the bitterness of coffee, dark chocolate and dark treacle. Texture is smooth and velvety and makes me think of cold frappe coffees.

Re-rate 3/18/08: Bottle at Schiphol airport. Black color with a big brown head that stays throughout the glass. Aroma of roasted malt, chocolate and a bit of coffee. Sweet roasted malt flavor with some chocolate, some light coffee notes and some dark bread. Medium to full-bodied. Very pleasant. 8/4/7/4/15=3.8

Bottle. Beautiful appearance - black with a big brown head. Roasty aroma with chocolate and hints of coffee. Rich sweet dark chocolatey flavor with some bitterness and a bit of alcohol in the finish. Medium bodied. Very good. 7/5/8/3/16=3.9

Much more interesting than what is available in the United States. The aroma is heavy with roasted malt. Flavor also has a roasted character with more malt. Surprisingly full malt flavor. Palate like a thick red wine.

Bottle. Pitch black colour with a big creamy sticky long lasting light brown head leaving a very nice lacing. Aroma of roasted malts and coffee, sweetness, roasty chocolate and alcohol. Flavour is soft with a very roasty maltiness, bitter chocolate, liquorice, bit harsd. Bitter and hoppy roasty finish. I do prefer and normal Guinness draught but this one is good indeed.

Bottle at home. Drank it quite warm. A sweeter version of one of my favorite all-timers. It’s dark chocolate color, not as black, and more sugary. Some of the wheat/bread flavor is less pronounced. Lovely bitter finish. Highly drinkable and most enjoyable. Only criticism would be that it’s perhaps too smooth, too easy.

Any first impressions?
-A veil of foam covers the brownish black.
-A rather timid aroma presents coffee and chocolate over wet earth.
-Vanilla and black beans diversify the mokaccino.
-A rich yet classy maltiness is lightened by the medium effervescence.

What if you dig deeper?
-Roastiness comes through in the finish.
-Black grape fruitiness adds to the already high complexity.
-A great integration of flavors in this very good foreign stout which is thankfully leagues ahead of the ubiquitous Guinness. Thanks Jim!

Bottle; best before March ’08.

Black with a creamy brown head. Simple, dry, metallic coffee aroma... not too bad. Dry dusty coffee flavour on a supervising weak body and harsh bitterness. The finish was quick, dry and bitter.