Guinness Black Lager is a black

lager Lager () is beer which has been brewed and conditioned at low temperature. Lagers can be pale, amber, or dark. Pale lager is the most widely consumed and commercially available style of beer. The term "lager" comes from the German for "storag ...

beer produced by Guinness, an Irish

brewing company A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of beer ...

owned by Diageo. The beer was tried in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

by Diageo, and in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

Guinness Anchor Berhad Heineken Malaysia Berhad (HEINEKEN Malaysia) (MYX: 3255) is a major producer of beer, stout, cider and non-alcoholic malt beverages in Malaysia and has been listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia since 1965. Among the brands they produc ...

, under its Guinness brand name.

Test marketing A test market, in the field of business and marketing, is a geographic region or demographic group used to gauge the viability of a product or service in the mass market prior to a wide scale roll-out. The criteria used to judge the acceptabilit ...

began in March 2010.

Market

The new product is aimed at young men who prefer chilled, bottled

s to pints of beer. Guinness believes there are lager drinkers that may be interested in a dark beer but not their famous stout. It is being sold in 330 millilitre bottles for six to nine months in Northern Ireland, as a test market for

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

, and in Malaysia to see whether there are opportunities for the product elsewhere. In Malaysia, the beer will be known as Guinness Premium Beer. It will be offered at a comparable price to other premium lagers. The move follows previous attempts by Diageo to boost sales by introducing variations of Guinness stout. In 2005, the company sold Brew 39 in bars in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

and before that it introduced Guinness XXX Extra Strong, Guinness Gold. If the beer sells well during its trial, it will be introduced to other markets in Ireland, Europe and the U.S. Guinness Black Lager is currently available in Australia and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. In July 2012, Black Lager was launched into the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...

market, available in packs of 4 X 330 ml bottles.

Marketing

Diageo had initially decided not to launch the new beer in the

because of the massive decrease in alcohol sales in that country. Alcohol consumption has dropped two per cent from its all-time peak in 2001. The lager is being offered at selected bars and off-sales outlets in Northern Ireland. The launch will be accompanied by an

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

and marketing campaign with promotions in bars. As of February 2013, the product is still being advertised in North America.

Composition

It is a 4.5% a.b.v. strength brew and gets its black colour from the roasted

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...

added into it.

Other Guinness brand products

Guinness has made several attempts to vary its brand in the past, some of which were not successful. These include Guinness Breo and Guinness Light.

References

External links

* {{Diageo plc Diageo beer brands Beer brands of Ireland Beer brands Irish alcoholic drinks Products introduced in 2010