Before we dive in to this week’s history topic, sending a BIG thanks to everyone who came out for my signing last Saturday at the Barnes & Noble in Brick, NJ. What an honor to hear so many of your Irish ancestry stories, including one lovely lady whose maiden name was “O’Neill” AND whose grandmother was “Rose!” Copies of IRISH EYES flew off the table. There are just six signed books left. Go get ‘em!
This Sunday, March 17 is of course, St. Patrick’s Day. I’m so looking forward to my busy weekend of IRISH EYES signings. If you’re in the area, please stop by.
Saturday, March 16th
Barnes & Noble, Holmdel, NJ
Commons at Holmdel
2130 Route 35, Holmdel, NJ | (732) 203-6180
1-3pm
Sunday, March 17th
Comfort Zone
44 1/2 Main Ave., Ocean Grove, NJ | (732) 203-6180
12 noon – 2pm
For a complete list of upcoming events, check out my website.
Now, onto history…!
The History of a Beloved Brew
For many of us, a creamy pint of Guinness stout is synonymous with St. Patrick’s Day. Known as the black stuff, Irish champagne, ebony nectar, black custard, and “a pint of plain” as Rose says in IRISH EYES, Guinness is one of the world’s oldest and most beloved beers. Let’s discuss…
In 1759, Irish brewer-inventor-philanthropist1 Arthur Guinness (1725 - 1803), the son of tenant farmers, signed a 9,000-year lease on a small brewery at St. James’s Gate in Dublin.2
The first known export of Guinness left Dublin port on a ship to England in 1796. In 1799, Guinness decided to focus exclusively on what was then called porter, a dark beer with a rich, creamy head now known as stout.3
On Arthur’s death, his eldest son, Arthur II, took over the business and expanded sales to Great Britain. By 1833, Guinness was the largest brewery in Ireland. Arthur’s son, Benjamin began working in the brewery at sixteen years old. He became head of the brewery on Arthur II’s death in 1855.4
By 1883, Guinness was the world’s largest brewery. Today, Guinness is brewed in 150 countries.5
Guinness’s stout gained a reputation for its nutritional and invigorating properties and for a time doctors recommended it to nursing mothers!6 According to the Guinness Storehouse Archives, the first official advertising campaign was launched in 1929, with the slogan, “Guinness for Strength.” The ad posters depicted people doing amazing feats of strength, supposedly powered by Guinness.7
Was the campaign bunk or was there some truth to it?
According to Charles Bamforth, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor Emeritus at University of California Davis, there are nutritional benefits to most beers, including antioxidants, B vitamins, fiber, silicon and prebiotics. Guinness is one of the richer sources of these nutrients. The polyphenols from barley and hops also act to lower cholesterol, reduce risk for heart disease, and protect against free radicals.8
Considering how filling Guinness is, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that a standard pint is only 210 calories. To put that in some kind of context, the McDonald’s Shamrock Shake I treated myself to yesterday advertises as 500 calories for a medium size and a whopping 800 calories for the large size. Being in the midst of a busy workday and driving later, the shake still seemed the more prudent treat, but if I’d had my druthers...
Guinness stayed a family affair until 1997 when it merged with food and beverage company Grand Metropolitan PLC, resulting in a new company, Diageo, then the world’s biggest seller of spirits.9
Today, Arthur Guinness’s stout is considered to be the national beer of Ireland.10
Executing the perfect pour requires skill and patience. For IRISH EYES, which begins with my heroine, Rose behind the bar of her family pub on Inishmore, I went online to the Guinness Academy (yes, that’s a real thing) and watched/re-watched the instructional video.11 The fruits of that “research” are reflected in this snippet from the book where Rose and Adam first meet. Enjoy!
“Failte. Is it thirsty you are, stranger?”
A nod answered, the motion sending fair hair flopping over one eye, the iris the same vivid blue as the spring gentians that bloom wild in even the rockiest bits of our island. He lifted a hand and pushed the errant lock back, and it was then that I saw it – the fresh scar slashing one side of his otherwise smooth brow.
“What do you recommend?” he asked, his accent, whilst top-drawer, marking him as a Yank.
Mentally running through the limited libations on offer, I chewed my lower lip, the skin split from previous mistreatment. “A pint of plain suits most,” I finally said, fluttering nervous fingers toward the taps.
“Beer would be bully, thanks.” He leveled me a lopsided smile, drawing my eye to his mouth. The teeth, white and even, might owe to means, but the full lips framing them were a pure and powerful gift of nature.
I reached up and drew a clean pint down from the rack. Keenly conscious of himself minding my every movement, I tilted the glass forty-five degrees, held it under the spout, and slowly pulled down upon the tap handle, filling it just above three-quarters. Tempted as I was to rush, I made myself wait for the beer to settle, the cascade of gaseous bubbles calming to create the perfect cap of creamy foam. Only then did I top off the draught and set it before himself, taking care not to spill so much as a single tawny drop.
Breath in my throat, I let myself look up. “That’ll be five p’s.”
Copyright Hope C. Tarr
Whether you’re celebrating this St. Patrick’s Day with Guinness or tea…
Slainte!
You can pick up a signed copy of IRISH EYES at these booksellers:
Barnes & Noble Upper West Side, Manhattan
Barnes & Noble, Brick Plaza, NJ
Barnes & Noble, Holmdel, NJ
Book Culture, Manhattan (2 locations)
The Corner Bookstore, Manhattan
Posman Books Chelsea Marketplace, Manhattan
Thunder Road Books, Spring Lake, NJ
The Comfort Zone, Ocean Grove, NJ
Also, find IRISH EYES on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, Target, Walmart and wherever books are sold.
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Arthur Guinness donated to charities, worked to ensure the poor had affordable health care, promoted the Gaelic arts to help preserve the Irish identity. A Protestant, he advocated religious tolerance for Catholics and Protestants. https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/facts-arthur-guinness
https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/facts-arthur-guinness
https://www.guinness-storehouse.com/en/discover/story-of-guinness
http://www.rahenyheritage.ie/local-history/on-this-day/19th-may-benjamin-lee-guinness
https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/facts-arthur-guinness
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) does not recommend drinking alcohol while breastfeeding and alcohol itself does not increase milk production or help moms breastfeed.
https://www.eatingwell.com/article/7677513/is-guinness-actually-healthy-heres-what-a-beer-expert-says/
https://academic.oup.com/nutritionreviews/article/78/Supplement_1/13/5877748?login=false
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Guinness
https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/guinness-facts-st-patricks-day
The perfect pour should take 119.5 seconds. The first pour must be poured into a pint glass that's held at 45 degrees to the draft and then left to rest. After a pause, long enough so what’s in the glass is a perfect black, the rest of the glass is filled, again at a 45-degree angle. What is handed across the bar should have a creamy head and should be served at exactly 42.8 F. https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/guinness-facts-st-patricks-day
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
I wish I had time to stop by in Holmdel--I'll be in NJ Sat, and that's my husband's hometown. Unfortunately, I need to be elsewhere at the same time.