Why Is There a Ball in Guinness Can: Everything You Need To Know

The ball in Guinness can has been a source of mystery and intrigue for beer enthusiasts all over the world, so if you have been wondering about the Guinness widget, how it works and what it does, we have got you covered.

The secret here is that it has everything to do with the taste of the beer.

Guinness cans have a plastic ball hidden in the mouth of the can that is responsible for giving the beer a creamy, Irish Stout-like finish. Continue reading this article to learn more about this Guinness widget.

Why Does a Guinness Can Have a Ball in It?

Guinness cans have a plastic ball hidden in the mouth of the can that is responsible for giving the beer a creamy, Irish Stout-like finish to build the taste of the beer. When you pour Guinness from the tap on draught, Nitrogen and Carbon Dioxide are combined to make the beer more drinkable.

This technique is called a Guinness Nitro surge and is achieved by the widget balls in the cans. They burst open and blast the Stout with Nitrogen gas to balance the texture of the beer in a can.

Guinness first developed the idea of the widget in 1969 but didn’t release it until 1989. The first-generation version of the widget was a flattened sphere that sat at the bottom of the can. In 1997, they released a floating spherical widget and called it the smoothifier. Now, these are ping-pong-like balls that are capsuled and filled with ingenious Nitrogen that opens when the ring is opened.

– Appearance

The widget is a small plastic ball with a hole in it that is activated when the can is opened. Once it bursts, it adds pressurized Nitrogen to the beer, giving it its real flavor. The pressure in the can reduces as soon as it is opened.

The beer opens with a bubbly effect, giving it the feel of being poured from the tap. This little ball resembles a little ping-pong ball.

– How It Works

These balls are meant to burst inside the cans. In bottles, these widgets look more like rockets which are three inches long. These balls have a tiny hole in them which squirt Nitrogen into the beer, thereby creating Nitrogen bubbles.

Once the Nitrogen gets mixed with the beer, it causes the pressure to build up.

Once the can or bottle is completely opened, it depressurizes, matching the pressure of the room.

– Do All Guinness Cans Have Balls Inside?

Yes, all Guinness beers have the ball widget installed in them. In 2020, they had to redesign the widgets because of Covid-19. Due to the shutdown of bars, there was an increase in the demand for cans. This led to a scarcity in manufacturing the widgets, so as a temporary fix, the brewers installed a fixed widget instead of a floating one.

– Does Guinness Make You Drunk?

Technically, just one beer won’t get you drunk. A Guinness is traditionally low on alcohol content with an ABV of 4.2 percent. You would need more than a couple of Guinness to get intoxicated. In case you get drunk on three beers normally, with Guinness you would need to double the quantity.

– Other Alternatives to the Guinness Stout

Here are some good alternative to Guinness:

1. Bearded Seal, Pinthouse Pizza – 6.1 percent
2. Cadillac Mountain Stout, Atlantic Brewing – 6.7 percent
3. Murphy’s Irish Stout, Murphy Brewery Ireland Ltd – 4.1 percent
4. Young’s Double Chocolate Stout, Eagle Brewery – 5.2 percent

– Serving

You might have seen your bartender pour this beer twice. The reason for this is that Guinness beer is an art in itself. It is premium craft beer, so there is a special way to pour this beer.

You must pour it into a beer glass at an angle of 45 degrees. Once it is three-quarters full, you must let the beer sit down for a few seconds and then re-pour the rest of the beer into the glass. This is to allow the hefty, creamy white head to settle down and avoid it from overflowing.

• Serving at Home

Serving this beer at home depends on whether you are pouring it from a bottle or a can. If you are pouring the beer from a bottle, follow the two-step pouring process. If it is from a can, let it chill in the refrigerator for three hours and then take out and pour it in one swift action.

FAQ

Here are some commonly-asked questions regarding this topic.

– How Come Guinness Taste Like Coffee?

Guinness tastes like coffee because the roasted, unmalted barley leaves a taste of a roasted balance. A Guinness draught has some malty-sweetness and an overall hoppy bitterness, with hefty notes of coffee and chocolate. On the palate it is velvety, smooth, creamy and full-bodied.

This is a robust brew with a full mouthfeel. The roasted barley also gives it a distinct black or dark brown color, with almost a coffee-like texture. Drinking a Guinness is an experiential thing when done right.

– Are You Supposed To Shake Guinness in a Can?

No, although it is a beer with ball inside, you should not shake a Guinness can before drinking. These bottles or cans can be chilled a day prior but should not be shaken before drinking. Just open the can, sip and go.

Conclusion

If you are a fan of thick, foamy beers, Guinness is your go-to beer. It is an English beer with ball in can, and the reason why the beer cans come this way are threefold:

• The ping-pong-shaped widgets are filled with Nitrogen, which creates bubbles when released into the beer.
• These balls burst when the ring is pulled by creating high pressure in the can. Once the can is completely open, the pressure lowers to room pressure.
• Due to this reaction, it is best suggested to pour the beer into a glass at two intervals. This prevents the beer from overflowing outside the glass.

Now that you have learned everything about this fascinating beer, are you willing and eager to try this out, or do you want to reach for some other alternatives?