BALTIMORE, July 30, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- From the
signing of a 9,000 year lease for a brewery on – what was then –
the outskirts of Dublin, to a
62-acre facility more than 3,000 miles away in Baltimore, the last 260 years have been
nothing short of historic for Guinness. On August 3rd, the storied Irish brewer
will celebrate the first anniversary of its Open Gate Brewery in
Baltimore, which serves as the
home of Guinness in the U.S. and the center for all of its
experimental beers on this side of the Atlantic.
While the Dublin-brewed
classics – like Guinness Draught – are always available at the
Guinness Open Gate Brewery, what's been most special in year one is
the more than 80 unique beers that have already been brewed at the
new brewery. From a recurring series of favorites, including
Guinness IPA, Guinness Milk Stout, Guinness White Ale, and Guinness
Blonde – which became the first beer to be available nationally
from the brewery last summer – to more limited releases like Nitro
Vanilla Cream Ale, Orange and Hibiscus Belgian Ale, Raspberry
Kettle Sour, and Belgian Style Apricot Pale Ale, there truly is
something for all legal drinking age adults.
Located just 10 minutes from downtown Baltimore and short trips from Washington D.C., Philadelphia and New
York, the Open Gate Brewery welcomed more than 400,000
visitors in its first year. Although about 65% of those visitors
are local to Maryland, each of the
50 states (and beyond) have been represented by guests since last
year's August 3rd opening.
The impact that the brewery has had on Maryland goes well beyond visitors, as more
than 200 permanent, full-time employees from the surrounding area
now work at the Guinness Open Gate Brewery.
"When we started working towards opening the Guinness Open Gate
Brewery, we knew we were building something significant that would
mean so much to millions of people around the world," said
Nuno Teles, President, Diageo Beer
Company USA. "What we couldn't
fully predict is what being a part of the Maryland brewing scene would feel like. It's
widely accepted that the U.S. overall is the most dynamic beer
market in the world, but the breweries in Baltimore, and Maryland as a whole, have created such a
supportive and inclusive environment. Each day we're more and more
grateful to be here."
A number of celebratory activities and daily live music will
also be available at the brewery in the week leading up to the
anniversary, including a special beer dinner on Wednesday, July 31st and a cornhole
tournament with prizes on Friday, August
2nd. On the official day of the anniversary,
Saturday, August 3rd,
country superstar Frankie Ballard
will headline a free concert at 7:30pm
EDT. Local confectionary legend, Charm City Cakes, will also
be providing a special Guinness cake and thousands of cupcakes for
the party.
In addition to all of the planned festivities, the brewing team
has been working on a special beer to mark the milestone: First
Anniversary Barrel-Aged Grand Cru. Available exclusively at the
Guinness Open Gate Brewery on tap and in 12oz. cans for takeaway,
this 10.5% ABV release is a blend of an imperial stout aged in
bourbon barrels and a Belgian-style Golden
Ale aged in rum barrels.
"Historically, the Grand Cru was often brewed and blended to
mark special occasions, so it felt like an appropriate style for
our anniversary," said Hollie
Stephenson, Head Brewer at the Guinness Open Gate Brewery.
"We've felt so much support from the community in this first year,
and we're so appreciative that they've allowed us to experiment
with unexpected beer styles and expand what Guinness means to beer
drinkers in Maryland and across
the country. We carefully blended this Grand Cru using
bourbon barrel aged stout and a rum barrel aged Belgian-style
golden ale to embody that experimentation, and as a thank you to
our supporters and community."
For updates on the anniversary celebration and more from the
Guinness Open Gate Brewery, follow @GuinnessBreweryUS on Facebook
and Instagram and @GuinnessUS on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter or
visit www.GuinnessBreweryBaltimore.com. Guests of all ages are
always welcome to visit the Guinness open Gate Brewery Monday
through Wednesday 3:00pm to 9:00pm,
Thursday 3:00pm to 10:00pm, Friday
12:00pm to 10:00pm, Saturday
11:00am to 10:00pm and Sunday
11:00am to 9:00pm and enjoy a guided
tour of the brewing facility. Whether enjoying a pint at the Open
Gate Brewery in Baltimore, at the
Guinness Storehouse in Dublin or
anywhere in between, please do so responsibly.
About Guinness
The Guinness brand was established
in 1759, when Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000 year lease on
St. James's Gate Brewery in
Dublin. Brewed using four main ingredients, water, barley
(malted & roasted), hops and yeast, Guinness is the world's
most popular stout. The iconic beer is brewed in 49 countries
worldwide and sold in over 150 with almost 9 million glasses of
Guinness enjoyed every day around the world. The most
GUINNESS is sold in Great Britain,
Ireland, USA, Nigeria
and Cameroon. More information can
be found at www.guinness.com.
About Diageo Beer Company
Diageo Beer Company
USA (formerly Diageo-Guinness
USA) is the U.S. beer and flavored
malt beverage business of Diageo. Brands within Diageo Beer Company
include the iconic Guinness, Harp, Smithwick's and Smirnoff
ICE.
About Diageo
Diageo is a global leader in beverage
alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands including
Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, Bulleit
and Buchanan's whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas,
Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio,
Tanqueray and Guinness.
Diageo is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO)
and the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and our products are sold in
more than 180 countries around the world. For more information
about Diageo, our people, our brands, and performance, visit us at
www.diageo.com. Visit Diageo's global responsible drinking
resource, www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways
to share best practice.
Follow us on Twitter for news and information about Diageo
North America: @Diageo_NA.
MEDIA
CONTACTS:
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|
Dave Finn,
TAYLOR
|
Kelly Pepe,
DIAGEO
|
(212)
714-5792
|
(908)
902-4435
|
dfinn@taylorstrategy.com
|
kelly.pepe@diageo.com
|
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SOURCE Diageo Beer Company USA