Furore over barman dissing two-part Guinness pour

Guinness fans have hit back at claims the famous double pour does not make the perfect pint and is just a ‘marketing ploy’.

Pouring two-thirds of the pint and leaving it to rest for 60 to 80 seconds has become regular practice for any barman worth their salt – with Guinness insisting it is necessary to achieve the ‘perfect head height’ and ‘balanced flavour profile’.

As the company itself says: ‘Good things come to those who wait.’

However an Irish barman based in the UK has ignited an almighty row by insisting the double pour is simply a marketing ploy and does not affect the stout’s quality or taste.

Nate Brown, owner of Paloma Café, Soda & Friends and Nebula cocktail bars in London, dismissed the practice in an article entitled ‘there’s no such thing as the perfect Guinness pour’.

This isn’t done for the beer’s sake; it was practice in the Guinness brewery to speed up serving the masses at home time — the brand has always had the savviest of marketing departments,’ he wrote in FT Magazine.

Diageo, Guinness’ parent company, quickly hit out against the claim that the two-part pour is simply a marketing stunt.

And Oisin Rogers, co-owner of the Devonshire in Soho, described Mr Brown’s assertion as ‘absolute horses***’.

He tweeted: “It’s impossible to get a correctly presented pint of Guinness in one pour because the meniscus is negative. Therefore a dimple rather than a dome. Also he’d texture completely disappointing leading to a far inferior drink. There.”

The row quickly bubbled over on social media as aficionados defended the two-part pour policy.

“Not true, has to be in 2 stages, too many times it’s been poured terribly in one go,” said David Lace, an Irishman living in the UK.

Meanwhile, Guinness obsessive Ben Allcock, who lives in Cheshire, suggested the two-part pour was part of a sacred ritual that “makes the pay off even sweeter”.