Contemplating Stout

As an owner of an Irish pub I have a unique take on stout. When other bars in the neighborhood are selling one stout to a die-hard, we are tapping several kegs a night. Not just on a snowy winter evening, but every weekend of the year.
I have to admit that I have not made it to Ireland myself, but all the stories lead me to believe that aside from the American lager invasion, the Irish still chug stout like it's water.
With this background it was impossible for the Guinness 250th Anniversary Stout to go untried.
I picked it up this evening and it started me thinking about stout in general even before I opened a single bottle.
Historically, stout is exactly what its name suggests. Brewers with very little control over their malting and temperatures occasionally overdid a porter. I'm sure this was sometimes intentional and often an accident. Stout porter could be higher in alcohol, color, bitterness or all of the above. This wild definition is still all that exists today. The only extra help one gets from the brewer today is the word "Imperial" if it is extremely high in alcohol.
This lack of information makes it hard to decide when to make one of these part of your day. There are a couple things that can help you decide. Alcohol content is one. A day at the beach and a 9% beer are probably not the perfect pairing unless you have a crush on the lifeguard and figure getting blasted and nearly drowning will help get attention. Summer is not usually the big time for stouts, but their durable character makes it something to think about. These beers are much less likely to get crappy if left in the back of the car for a couple days and often taste better a bit warmer if that should happen by accident.
Guinness also likes to point out that their stout is actually much lower in calories than one might expect. If you have ever tasted other stouts this claim isn't really that surprising. Aside from some dark malt there isn't much to American draught Guinness. It is currently manufactured in Canada which should be a clue.
Guinness is not the only stout made to last a whole evening. Many stouts on the market are lower in alcohol than pales and other light ales. You can even choose from coffee and espresso stouts that can help ward off drowsiness depending on how they are made.
As for the Guinness 250th Anniversary stout.
Stick to Extra Stout!