As Americans on Monday celebrate another St. Patrick’s Day with parades and parties, it’s highly likely that Guinness consumption will see a spike.
Arthur Guinness started brewing ales in Dublin, Ireland, in 1759, and exported his first barrel 10 years later, according to the Guinness website – well before St. Patrick’s Day became an official public holiday in 1903 in that country. The first state-sponsored St. Patrick’s Day parade didn’t make its way to Dublin until 1931.
As for the U.S., the dates are a bit different. The first St. Patrick’s Day parade, held in New York City, was on March 17, 1762 — 14 years before the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
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As St. Patrick’s Day festivities have spread throughout the world over time, so has people’s love of Guinness.
On average, more than 13 million pints of Guinness are consumed worldwide on St. Patrick’s Day, according to WalletHub.
Guinness is a popular choice of beer on St. Patrick’s Day. (Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Guinness was the fastest-growing imported beer in the United States last year, and 2024 marked a record year in sales, according to the Dublin-based brewery.
What Americans might not know about the popular Irish beer is that it has a footprint in the U.S.
The only other Guinness breweries outside of Ireland are in Baltimore (home of the Guinness Baltimore Blonde) and Chicago, which opened in 2023.
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While there’s sure to be plenty of traditional Irish fare like shepherd’s pie, and corned beef and cabbage, served on this day of revelry, what food pairs the best with the dry Irish stout?
‘To be honest with you’
To find out, Fox News Digital spoke to Colm O’Connor, a brewery ambassador for the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
“You can’t beat a Guinness stew, to be honest with you,” O’Connor said.
Yes, Guinness can be used as a base in Irish stew. (iStock)
O’Connor said Guinness can be used as a base to marinate beef or lamb, “but mainly beef.”
Another common pairing, he said, is “Guinness and oysters.”
“People are not surprised when they hear that, but they’re always curious to know why,” O’Connor said.
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The main reason is that Guinness is a dry Irish stout.
A stout is a type of dark beer that is defined by its use of malted barley that’s been roasted, “which gives it its color and gives it the flavor,” O’Connor said.
Dry Irish stouts pair well with oysters, a Guinness brewery ambassador told Fox News Digital. (iStock)
Dry Irish stouts are a sort of “subgenre of that,” O’Connor said — and are brewed with unmalted roasted barley.
Roasted malted barley “is going to give you a sweet finish,” O’Connor said.
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“Not so” with a dry Irish stout, he said.
“Because of the use of unmalted roasted barley, you’ll get the three core flavors – the sweetness, the roasts, the coffee – and you’ll get the hops,” O’Connor said.
“And once the hops kind of subside, then you’re actually left with a subtle dryness.”
Guinness is brewed with unmalted roasted barley. (iStock)
That dryness means Guinness also goes well with cheeses and meats.
“Essentially, it renews your palate,” O’Connor said. “It’s basically the same reason people would pair dry champagne with oysters or dry wine with oysters. It’s the exact same means to that end. But this is more like a beer equivalent of that.”
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O’Connor said he bakes with Guinness as well.
It can be used in Irish soda bread, but O’Connor likes to “take it a step further” and use it with rye sourdough bread and toasted sunflower seeds.
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Guinness can also be good for dessert.
O’Connor said he’s known some people to make Guinness caramel ice cream floats.