The perfect pour Guinness: Here's how to do it in a bar and at home
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Watch how it's done. How to pour the perfect Guinness.
Joel Reitz, co owner of O'Reilly's Irish Pub, shows how to pour the perfect pint of Guinness.
IndyStar
Would it even be St. Patrick’s Day without plenty of Guinness?
The brand, established in 1759 in Dublin, is synonymous with the holiday.
But it's not enough to just have it piped into a glass. The proper pour of the beer is a ceremony that enhances the drinking experience, impacting everything from the taste to the presentation, according to Guinness.
“It takes a lot of practice,” said Joel Reitz, co-owner of O’Reilly’s Irish Pub & Restaurant in downtown Indianapolis, who has been certified in pouring by the brand (yes, that's a thing). “You need to know your own draft system.”
There’s plenty of practice to be had this month. Reitz estimates that Guinness accounts for about 25% of O'Reilly's beer sales during the month of March.
Reitz and Guinness share techniques for achieving the proper pour in a bar environment, as well as at home.
Sláinte!
How to pour a perfect Guinness draught in a bar
In bars and pubs, there's a two-part pour, according to the brand’s website.
- Start with a clean, dry Guinness glass.
- The keg should be 41-44.6 degrees Fahrenheit.
- For the starting pour, hold the glass at a 45-degree angle and aim the top nozzle for the gold harp logo on the glass. Stop there. That’s the half-full mark.
- Let it settle 60 to 80 seconds. The darker beverage will begin to sink under the white foam.
- Fill the glass completely, keeping the glass straight this time. Fill until the foam forms a slight dome over the rim. There will be a defined line between the off-white head of the beer and the dark Guinness.
- It’s here where pourers like Reitz add a bit of pizzazz, moving the glass under the tap during the final seconds of the process to draw a shamrock in the foam.
“Then the head is thick enough to finish the other quarter of the beer,” he said. “This is where the expertise comes in.”
While a certified pourer is tested on tap gas pressure, beer temperature, glass polishing and other parts of the process, there are ways to achieve a perfect pour at home.
How to pour the perfect Guinness from a can at home
- Let the can chill for at least 24 hours before serving. The beer should be refrigerated at 46.4 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Pour the beer into a large class in one smooth action.
How to pour the perfect Guinness from a bottle at home
- The bottle should be chilled at least 24 hours before serving.
- Tilt the glass and the bottle towards each other, starting both at an angle of 45 degrees.
- Pour slowly in one action. The bottle shouldn’t touch the glass at any stage. As you reach the end of the bottle, the head will come just over the top.
Contact IndyStar reporter Cheryl V. Jackson at cheryl.jackson@indystar.com or 317-444-6264. Follow her on X.com: @cherylvjackson.