At Philly’s Irish pubs, Guinness is ‘not your old man’s drink anymore’

Fergie’s Pub patrons can’t get enough Guinness lately, even by the Irish bar’s standards.

The Center City watering hole is going through about 20 kegs of Guinness a week, up from about 10 per week this time last year, said owner Fergie Carey.

“It is on fire,” said Carey, a Dublin native who opened his pub on Sansom Street 30 years ago. “Younger people and younger women are drinking Guinness. It’s not your old man’s drink anymore. It’s everybody’s.”

From Delaware County to South Jersey, and New York to London, Guinness is in high demand.

While Philadelphia-area bar owners aren’t facing shortages like their U.K. counterparts — one of which distributed Guinness ration cards over the holidays in a futile attempt to conserve the beer — several local Irish pubs have reported recent upticks in sales.

That’s thanks in part, they say, to a noticeable increase in popularity among 20-something customers.

What Philly barkeeps are seeing is part of a national trend: At bars, restaurants, and breweries across the country, demand for Guinness rose faster than for any other imported beer last year, the New York Times reported in December, citing Nielsen.

Joyce He, the U.S. brand director for Guinness, told the Times that Philadelphia, with its relatively large Irish population, was among its six top performing markets.

Though Guinness sales are up, not every pub is seeing Fergie’s-level surges. At the Plough & the Stars in Old City, sales of the stout increased 10% in the last few months of 2024, said co-owner Jerome Donovan.

At Plough — which has been “the biggest Guinness seller in Philadelphia for a long, long time,” Donovan said, citing Guinness reps — the recent demand is “not the same as what’s happening in England.”

Younger customers who have spent time in Ireland want more Guinness more often, Donovan said, but younger customers without Irish ties aren’t clamoring for it. In the past year, the nonalcoholic Guinness 0 seems to have gained popularity at a faster rate.

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Over the bridge in Westville, Schileens Pub saw Guinness sales rise almost 12% in recent months, said co-owner John Schillig. The jump was more than the small increase bar owners see every year when the weather turns cold.

“Through the holidays, a lot more people were ordering Guinness,” Schillig said. “We’ve been inundated with all the hoppy beers. … Maybe people are just getting back to a good old Guinness.”

Bar owners and industry experts attribute the increased popularity to a variety of factors, including the brand’s consistent advertising and the social-media trend of “splitting the G,” a challenge to drink enough Guinness on your first sip that the foam line falls in the middle of the “G” on a branded glass. Celebrities have taken part, helping the challenge go viral.

But local industry experts said the renewed appeal goes beyond an internet moment.

“The 20-somethings, they’ll do anything,” Schillig said. “If you have a gentleman or a woman in here that enjoys a good Guinness, they’re not interested in ‘splitting the G.’”

Even younger patrons who try to “split the G” on a pint at Bonner’s Irish Pub in Center City, “also love watching the process, the pour,” said manager Ben Gibbons.

A proper Guinness pour is considered an art form. It requires the right glass, a 20 oz. imperial pint, and takes several minutes.

Several local bar owners said the heightened interest is also a sign of changing preferences among imbibers who are gravitating away from craft beer and toward lower-calorie canned cocktails like Stateside and Surfside. For some who enjoy the taste of beer, Guinness is a good middle ground.

Ounce for ounce, it has roughly the same calories as a Bud Light, with slightly more carbs, about 10 grams per 12 ounces compared to Bud Light’s 6.6.

“Guinness on tap only comes in at 4%. It’s light on calories. It’s light in carbs,” Carey said. “You can have your pint of beer and look tough, and it’s pretty much a bloody health drink.”

At J.D. McGillicuddy’s in Havertown, general manager Tom Thornton said just last week he noticed his 20-something son and his son’s buddies were ordering Guinnesses at the bar.

“These kids are looking for alternatives,” Thornton said. “The IPAs, if you drink too many of them, you kind of feel it,” especially if they are of the higher alcohol-by-volume variety.

Guinness is “just a little more manageable,” he added.

And Thornton said it’s not just the younger customers: Middle-aged patrons, especially men, are also ordering Guinness more.

Some of it, he said, may have to do with smart marketing: Guinness recently partnered with soccer’s Premier League, and has been the “official beer of Notre Dame Fighting Irish alumni and fans” since 2020.

McGillicuddy’s has hosted Guinness promotional events during Notre Dame football games, Thornton said, and they’ve brought out large crowds. He said he expects to pour a ton of Guinness on Thursday night when Notre Dame plays Penn State in the Orange Bowl, a College Football Playoff semifinal game.

“With this ‘Delco Super Bowl,’ half of them will be rooting for Penn State, half for Notre Dame,” Thornton said of the anticipated crowd. The game might even prompt Thornton to get in on the trend.

“I might have to try a Guinness,” Thornton said, “to see what I’m missing.”